Dietmar Hamann has urged Manchester City to be patient with manager Mark Hughes as the Welshman gels together the star names at the club.
Hughes has drafted in Gareth Barry, Carlos Tevez, Emmanuel Adebayor, Kolo Toure and Roque Santa Cruz this summer.
"The pressure will be bigger than last year and you have to wait and see," ex-City midfielder Hamann told BBC Sport.
"It's important to keep faith with the manager now as they can't change him every year if they want to go forward."
Expectations are high at Eastlands after Hughes was given the funds by the club's billionaire owner Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan to bring some of the Premier League's biggest names to the club.
City have strengthened their attack with the signings of former Manchester United striker Tevez, Togo international Adebayor and Santa Cruz from Blackburn.
England regular Barry has also signed from Aston Villa to bolster the midfield, while Toure's arrival from Arsenal provides Hughes with some much-needed cover in defence.
The new arrivals have seen City eclipse their Premier League rivals in terms of spending in the close season, but whether the new-look side can come together as an effective unit remains to be seen.
Their first real test comes on Saturday when Hughes's 'galacticos' travel to face his former club Blackburn in their first game of the season.
"It's exciting times," added Hamann. "But they have to make sure they gradually improve and don't go from one extreme to another. If they do that then they have a great future."
Since replacing Sven-Goran Eriksson as City manager at the beginning of last season Hughes's spending is close to the £200m mark.
And, despite sounding a cautious warning over expectations, Hamann does believe his old side are in a position to push on and challenge the Premier League's elite.
"If you look at it, they probably have a squad as good as anyone now," said the 35-year-old, who played 71 games for City in three seasons before being released in the summer.
"If they do improve, and get a good team and good team spirit going, then they can challenge for a top-four position very soon."
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