Manuel Pellegrini's side are seven points behind leaders Chelsea with 14 league games remaining, having played out a 1-1 draw with Jose Mourinho's men on January 31.
Manchester City's next test is a trip to Stoke on Wednesday, and Hughes believes his team could end the visitors' title chances.
"City will probably need to win every game they have left to beat Chelsea," he was quoted as saying by The Mirror.
"It’s not beyond them. They will never think it’s impossible because they will always keep going."
Hughes would love to do the double over City, having claimed a surprise win at Etihad Stadium in August last year.
If City lose at Stoke and Chelsea beat Everton, the gap at the top will increase to 10 points - an advantage Hughes believes may be too big to make up.
"You get to this stage of the season and start running out of games," he said.
"A 10-point gap before Christmas doesn't worry teams. With 12 to 14 games left, it is more difficult. The more games chalked off, the greater the difficulty City will find."
