Manchester City academy chief Jim Cassell accepts it will become tougher for his players to break into the first team under the club's new regime.

"I sincerely hope the bar has been raised for the young players because the whole club is about the first team challenging for success," he told the Manchester Evening News.

"If Sven is able to attract top internationals and the best players to City that is brilliant. It is great for the club and is great for the supporters. It gives our boys an added incentive and we will go on doing the job, as we always have, producing talent for the first team.

"Three England internationals have graduated through our Academy since the turn of the century so we feel we have a decent track record.

"I accept the higher the club climbs the more difficult it will be for youngsters to break through but that is a challenge we all accept and we all desire because it means City are heading upwards.

"The first team and ourselves are not mutually exclusive, quite the opposite in fact. We are here to benefit the first team and the better they do the more youngsters want to join us.

"It's all good, because we all work in support of the first team - that is the purpose of being in football. Everybody wants the first team to do well, and our role is to keep producing players to add to the manager's squad.

"Sven is going to need time to find out about the club. Of course he has major experience from within the game, and we're all looking forward to working with him, benefiting from his time at club and national level."