Pep Guardiola will enjoy working with Kelechi Iheanacho at Man City, says Manuel Pellegrini

Manuel Pellegrini thinks Kelechi Iheanacho has a big future under Pep Guardiola at Manchester City.

Iheanacho struck twice as Manchester City moved up to third after condemning Stoke to their second 4-0 defeat in a week.

After winning the penalty in the first half, the impressive Iheanacho got in on the act himself after the interval, making sure of the victory with two expertly-taken goals on 64 and 74 minutes to seal a comfortable victory ahead of Tuesday's Champions League date with Real Madrid.

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"A player that scores two goals and earns a penalty is obviously a very good performance especially for a striker. Not only that, he moved very well and received a lot of the ball. I'm happy for him as he's a young player with a lot of condition. He will be very important for the future of this team." 

The result sees City leapfrog Arsenal into third - until the Gunners play on Sunday at least - and open up a five-point gap rivals Manchester United in fifth. 

Pellegrini was delighted with what he saw and thought it was the perfect preparation for the visit of Real Madrid.

He said: "I think it was the perfect match. It was important to have our mind focused on this game and not on Tuesday.

"Big teams must be able to have their minds in all competitions and have good performances in them.

"Like I said though, it was exactly the same against Paris Saint-Germain - we had played well against Bournemouth in the days before. It's a good way to prepare for the Champions League."