Kevin De Bruyne says Manchester City have been figured out

Manchester City midfielder Kevin De Bruyne says the team have been figured out this season, but believes they can perform even better than they did in the previous campaign.

City are in Champions League action this evening against Schalke at the Veltins Arena, before then taking on Chelsea in the Carabao Cup final on Sunday afternoon as they look to pick up their first trophy of the season.

Pep Guardiola’s side won the Carabao Cup last season alongside the Premier League and are still in the hunt to win all four competitions this term, having recently drawn Swansea City in the quarter-finals of the FA Cup.

They also sit top of the Premier League table after 27 games - although Liverpool still have a game in hand - but Belgian midfielder De Bruyne believes the team have been worked out to a certain extent this season.

City lost just two games in the Premier League last season and have already lost four this term and would have to win 11 straight matches to match their total of victories in their 2017/18 title-winning campaign.

Still, they have a chance to win an unprecedented quadruple between now and June 1, with Guardiola looking for his first Champions League title since 2011.

De Bruyne believes that opponents have been able to prepare better for what the team is able to throw at them this season, but is still confident of their chances of success across all fronts.

"In the league we lost a few more games than we did last year but we are still fighting on all fronts," he said.

"I think other teams figure out what we do, maybe, a little bit better. They maybe also have better squads. We just added one player, the rest is the same team.

"The way we play is always going to be the same with Pep, we're not going to change. Everybody knows that.

"But in the end I don't think there is a lot of difference. We've a lot of points in the league and I think the standard we are setting is still very high.

"Maybe it's not the same as last year but maybe we'll win more titles this year. The most important thing is titles. If we win three titles we will have done better than last year."

It is an interesting comment from De Bruyne, particularly given the fact that his team are favourites to win the Premier League, Champions League, FA Cup and Carabao Cup this season.

Winning all four has never been done in England and will still be an extremely tough challenge for the team, but something which is realistic given the quality and strength in depth in their squad.

It is also an interesting time for him to admit such a thing, with City winning each of their last four games in all competitions, scoring 15 goals in doing so. They are also 10 days removed from thrashing Chelsea 6-0 in the Premier League ahead of their meeting at Wembley Stadium this weekend.

That said, they have lost to the likes of Newcastle United, Leicester City and Crystal Palace in the Premier League this season, teams of the calibre which they were comfortably beating last term. City only lost to Liverpool and Manchester United in the Premier League last season, both of which came by one-goal margins.

Still, the team have every chance of winning four trophies this season and certainly look a long way from being figured out.