Manchester City boss Mark Hughes admits he's been desperate to kickoff preseason training with his new squad.

"We've been looking forward to it - well I certainly have!" he told City's website.

"It seems to have been a long time since I first came to the Club and signed on the dotted line. I think someone said it's my one-month anniversary today.

"It's very been good and it's gone very quickly, but there's been a bit of frustration because a lot of the work I've been doing has been to get a feel for Carrington, see what changes needed to be made and make it a better environment for the players.

"All that's been ongoing but first and foremost I'm a football manager and I want to work with football players."

But Hughes will have to wait slightly longer for those in the squad he inherited who have been involved in Euro 2008 and other summer international games.

He revealed: "There's a few missing from the start of pre-season training.

"A number of players have been playing internationals right up until the middle of June. That includes the likes of Vedran Corluka and Gelson Fernandes along with a number of others, so I've given them dispensation.

"I think it's important after a long, hard season, that if you can give them three to four weeks complete rest you'll reap the benefits further on in the season."

And Hughes himself admitted that he can't wait for his first competitive game as City Manager to come around.

"There's a really exciting time and challenge ahead of us," he said. "It's an exciting time for everybody involved. I can't wait to get properly started and prepared for a long season."