Hughes has accepted the task of guiding City into the top four despite retaining a chance of succeeding Avram Grant at Chelsea as well as a lingering belief he could one day take over from Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United.

Yet the former Wales skipper had no hesitation in saying yes to Blues' demanding owner Thaksin Shinawatra, even though he has never met the former Thailand Prime Minister in person.

The pair may have spoken on the telephone but it was left to Thaksin's aides, plus City's new executive chairman Garry Cook to sell Hughes their vision of the club and leave the 44-year-old in no doubt all him ambitions can be met at Eastlands.

"If I am successful here I don't need any stepping stones," Hughes said.

"It is all set up here. If we can get this place going and moving in the right direction we will be at the top end of the Premier League and competing for places in Europe.

"Now I have joined a club that matches my ambition."

And let no-one be in any doubt Hughes' ambition is to reach the very top of his profession.

"I want to be the best I can be. But I needed the means to do that. At Manchester City I think I will be given those means," he said.

"This club wants to be at the top table, not only in this country but in Europe as well.

"As a player I was involved in winning trophies. As a manager I want to have the chance and the resource to achieve that as well. It is why I am here."

Hughes denied any contact with Chelsea, while his response to talk of his links with United met with a curt 'I played for other clubs as well you know' was an attempt to distance himself from the past.

The Wrexham-born star is more interested in the future, which he is sure will be littered with success.

However, he did issue one word of warning. In assessing the 16 previous managers that have come and gone since Ferguson came to power at Old Trafford and, of more relevance, the curt manner of Sven-Goran Eriksson's dismissal having failed to meet Thaksin's expectations despite, on the surface, enjoying a perfectly acceptable debut campaign, Hughes has called for the kind of stability that has been sadly lacking at City down the years.

"If you look at all the successful clubs in the Premier League invariably they have a base of continuity that allows them to keep evolving and progressing. We need that too," he said.

"It is not something we have had in recent times. We need a passage of time that allows us to get the job done, to make sure we can build strong foundations that allows us to be successful."

Given adequate time, Hughes is confident his abilities are a match for anyone in the Premier League, which is where his initial priority lies even though his first competitive game will be in the UEFA Cup, a legacy of City's qualification through the Fair Play League.

And how ironic would it be if the fixture computer, which so often serves up calendars that suit broadcasters, should dictate City playing host to United in the opening weeks of the campaign, an August date for instance, as it was last season, leaving Ferguson to face his own protege in the most hostile of environments.

To their credit most of the City fans have welcomed Hughes' appointment, which has settled most of the turbulence created by Eriksson's exit.

But old rivalries sometimes run deep and Hughes seems to accept there will be some dissenting voices given his connections, no matter how hard he tries to cast them aside.

"I have been shaped by my experiences, both as a player and a manager," he added.

"But I do not wear the shirt anymore -I leave that to the players. Fans of any club voice their opinion but I have no doubt that any dissenting voices will quickly quieten.

"People who know how I work will understand how passionate I am and how much effort I put in to achieve positive results.

"I aim to be successful here, have no doubt about that."