Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini has declared that he does not feel under extra pressure despite the Premier League champions' worrying recent form.

City have gone three games without victory in all competitions and could be nine points below league leaders Chelsea by the time they kick-off in Sunday's derby at home to Manchester United.

They were knocked out of the League Cup by Newcastle United in mid-week and are also struggling to reach the knockout phase in the Champions League, but Pellegrini feels it is too early to judge City's season.

"I don't know what pressure (there is)," he said, in comments reported by several British newspapers on Saturday.

"I think it is very difficult to analyse the season when it is just in October, when you have just played nine Premier League games and you don't know whether or not you are going to qualify in the Champions League.

"It is the reality that we are eliminated from the Capital One Cup, but last year we were the only (title-chasing) team to continue in the Capital One, so maybe the other teams will have more difficulties this season when they have to play so many games."

Pellegrini believes that City's players should draw encouragement from last season, when they made a similarly slow start to the campaign, only to finish as league champions and League Cup winners.

"If I go (back) one year, it was exactly the same," the former Real Madrid coach said.

"Around the end of October, we had the same questions, and I answered the same way. It is the way we must play. We will continue doing the same way."

He added: "I am sure that our team will be again the strong team that we were in the second half of last year.

"We continue with our target to try to defend our title, to try to continue in the Champions League. Maybe last year we did better in the Capital One, but maybe this year we can win the FA Cup."

City will be without influential Spanish midfielder David Silva against United after he was ruled out for up to four weeks with a knee injury.