Manchester City playmaker Kevin De Bruyne has admitted that the squad are still "adjusting" to new manager Pep Guardiola's tactics.
The Spaniard replaced Manuel Pellegrini at the Etihad this summer and has implemented an intense, high-pressing style of football on his charges.
City left it late to eke out a win over Sunderland in their first game of the new season at the weekend, but De Bruyne believes that the squad can only improve as they get used to Guardiola's methods.
"It's taken some adjusting, but it's okay," he told the Manchester Evening News. "He has his tactics. I don't really play as a number 10, more as a free eight, with a lot of movement everywhere.
"Everyone is starting to understand it. You sometimes could see someone thinking 'Where should I run?' but for a first match it was better than expected. The intention is to play from the back and then scroll it to me and David [Silva], so we can be five against four, but Sunderland stuck against us a bit. Still, it was okay and we had chances.
"There will come matches with more risk – this was the first match and we were all adapting. It's very different from last year, as with every coach – it's a different way of working, of living, and I'm feeling good."
Next up for City is a trip to Steaua Bucuresti in the first leg of their Champions league playoff on Tuesday night, before a Premier League encounter with Stoke City in the Midlands on Saturday.
Neil Wilkes
