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Team possessed

Manchester City are the third-biggest ball-hogs in all of Europe’s Big Five leagues, behind only Borussia Dortmund and PSG

Pep Guardiola's side have seen 67.1 per cent of possession this term, with Tottenham the next best Prem side in sixth place

MANCHESTER CITY have enjoyed a flying start to the 2017-18 Premier League season.

Pep Guardiola's men have charged to the top of the table, dropping just two points from their opening six games while finding the back of the net an astounding 21 times.

 Man City are the third-biggest ball-hogs in all of Europe's Big Five leagues
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Man City are the third-biggest ball-hogs in all of Europe's Big Five leaguesCredit: Rex Features
 Borussia Dortmund are the best amongst Europe's Big Five leagues at over 70 per cent
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Borussia Dortmund are the best amongst Europe's Big Five leagues at over 70 per centCredit: Alamy Live News

But what is the secret to City's success? According to the numbers, it would appear to be their ball-hogging skills.

In all of Europe's Big Five leagues, Guardiola's side boast the third-highest possession rate, averaging an incredible 67.1 per cent of the ball.

Only Borussia Dortmund (70.2 per cent) and Paris Saint-Germain (67.7) sit about the Premier League giants, according to stats from the CIES Football Observatory.

Outside of the top five divisions in Europe, Celtic are the team with the highest possession rate, at an impressive 70.8 per cent.

Back to the continent's top leagues, Barcelona come in fourth with 64.1 per cent of the ball - ahead of fellow giants and another of Guardiola's former clubs Bayern Munich (64 per cent).

Tottenham are the second-highest Premier League club - and sixth overall - level with Bundesliga outfit RB Leipzig on 63 per cent.

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 Ligue 1 giants PSG come in second in the possession stats,
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Ligue 1 giants PSG come in second in the possession stats,Credit: AFP
 Tottenham are the Premier League's second-best ball-hogs, behind Man City
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Tottenham are the Premier League's second-best ball-hogs, behind Man CityCredit: Rex Features

Real Madrid (61.1 per cent) come in at No7, ahead of Italian giants AC Milan (60.4) and Juventus (59.8).

Bayer Leverkusen and Celta Vigo round out the top ten, with Southampton and Manchester United the only other Prem teams breaking into the top 20 on 56.9 and 56.2 per cent respectively.

Which Premier League striker has had the best start to the 2017-18 season? Find out here...

 Southampton are the third-best English team when it comes to possession
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Southampton are the third-best English team when it comes to possessionCredit: Rex Features

Check out seven things we learnt from this weekend's Premier League, including Man United and City's dominance, as well as Alvaro Morata's early claim for Chelsea legend status.

Did you know Harry Kane is the ONLY English player in the world's top 55? Check out the full list of stars now...

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