WATFORD, England - Pep Guardiola wants Manchester City to pay tribute to Sergio Aguero when the Argentine striker becomes its all-time leading scorer.

Aguero fired a hat-trick in City's 6-0 rout of Watford at Vicarage Road on Saturday and stands just two goals behind Eric Brook's mark of 177, set in the 1920s and 1930s.

City boss Guardiola believes it is now simply a question of when, not if, Aguero claims the record as his own and he hopes the club marks the occasion in style.

"Sergio now needs three goals to beat the record. It will be soon," Guardiola said.

"Hopefully we can make a good celebration because he's a legend, a part of the history of the club. That's good for him. He's a guy that I encourage to play, not just to score goals."

Guardiola also paid tribute to Aguero's unselfishness after allowing Raheem Sterling to take the 89th minute penalty that completed the rout of Watford.

"Sergio showed again what a good guy he is. I like penal-ties to be taken by the penalty taker, but I understand that Raheem created the penalty and it was with my blessing that Sergio gave it to him when it is already 0-5," Guardiola said.

Gabriel Jesus and Nicolas Otamendi were City's other scorers as it leapt over crosstown rival United to the top of the Premier League standings.

Unlike last season when his side's thrilling start to the campaign saw it win 10 straight games in all competitions only to end the season without a trophy, Guardiola believes the team is better equipped to maintain its form this campaign.

"Last season we won with the enthusiasm for the new manager and the new players. Some games we won because we were new," he said.

"I think we are more stable now. The players know me better, I know them better. The fundamentals are the same as last season, but we have good players and a good spirit.

"It's not easy to score 15 goals in eight days. Sometimes you have weeks like that and I am curious how we are going to react to it.

"It doesn't matter who plays or who scores the goals. Hopefully we can keep the same team spirit."

Watford manager Marco Silva knows his team's season will not be defined by the lopsided loss, but he is adamant his players must learn to handle teams that possess City's power up front.

"It was not a good afternoon for us, but it is a good match for our team to learn from," he said.

"City came here to play a strong match. They only changed one player from Wednesday and they didn't miss a beat.

"To compete at this level we need to keep our focus and our organization every time and throughout the match. That's the only way.

"We need to look forward. We lost only three points and I repeat it is a good game for us to analyze.

"It is difficult to play against City - and not only because of Aguero. What they did here this afternoon, they did eight days earlier against Liverpool and then in the Champions League."

Silva complained that two of City's first three goals were offside, and that his team was denied a clear penalty.

"When the referees make mistakes it makes it more difficult. It is clear that the referee made mistakes," he said.

"I will show my players their mistakes and how to learn from them. I hope the referee does the same thing."

Agence France-Presse