THERE are some people in football who will get excited at the prospect of a clash between Roy Keane and Mark Hughes.

But City's boss is more concerned about rounding off a terrific week in style than any personal clashes.

The Blues followed up a thumping Premier League win over West Ham by progressing in the UEFA Cup and tempting their prodigal son home from Chelsea.

So a win at Sunderland would be the perfect way to round things off going into the international break.

Nevertheless, any meeting between Hughes and Keane is bound to spark intrigue.

Both men know what it is like to win the trophies that matter, having been a part of United's double-winning team of 1994.

And both men have splashed out plenty of money in the summer in a bid to break into the top six of the Premier League.

"The connection with previous clubs that we played for will always be made every time we come up against each other," Hughes said.

"Roy's probably spent as much money as I have during this window, so he's not afraid to make changes to his playing squad if he sees fit.

"They've had a good start, so it'll be a difficult game for us.

Support

"At the Stadium of Light, they have a great, passionate support, as we do here.

"So it's never easy going there, and Roy has instilled a good work ethic into them that we'll have to overcome and match."

Keane has added Pascal Chimbonda, Steed Malbranque, El-Hadji Diouf, David Healy, Teemu Tainio, Djibril Cisse and Anton Ferdinand to his squad during a busy summer.

Malbranque is unlikely to figure after twisting his ankle in the midweek Carling Cup win at Nottingham Forest, while Tainio has a thigh problem and Ferdinand won't be risked as he recovers from a slight hamstring strain.

But Hughes has the tough task of ensuring his players are ready for another away game, three days after a gruelling night in Denmark.

"It can be difficult playing Thursday and then having to prepare for an away game in the Premier League on the following Sunday," Hughes said.

"We're mindful of that, but I've had experience of that as well, so we know the recovery protocols that we put in place to make sure that the players are fit and well going into the game."

Hughes, meanwhile, is aiming for a run in the UEFA Cup after City were paired with Cypriot side AC Omonia.

Hughes said: "We face another difficult tie, in fairness. Omonia knocked out AEK Athens in the last round.

"It shows there are no easy games in Europe these days, so we'll have to be on our mettle."

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