Pep Guardiola has delivered an update on the fitness of his Manchester City squad ahead of Saturday's Premier League clash with Chelsea at the Etihad Stadium.
Three days after thrashing Ipswich Town 6-0 at Portman Road, the Citizens let a two-goal lead slip to lose 4-2 away against Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League on Wednesday night, leaving them in danger of failing to qualify for the last 16.
Five senior Man City players were not involved in Paris including defender Kyle Walker, who is on the verge of completing his move to Serie A side AC Milan.
Rodri remains sidelined with a long-term knee injury and Oscar Bobb has gradually been building up his fitness after more than five months out with a leg fracture, while Nathan Ake and Jeremy Doku were both left at home in midweek due to injury; the latter of whom picked up a knock in the win over Ipswich.
Ruben Dias has since been added to Man City's injury list after he asked to be substituted at half time in the defeat to PSG, and Guardiola has since confirmed whether he and other first-team members will be available for selection on Saturday.
© Imago
Dias, Doku ruled out of Chelsea clash
Providing an injury update on his squad at a press conference on Friday, Guardiola said: "[We have the] same injuries, we had [before]. "Ruben and Doku are out. The other players out are [still] out."
Asked specifically about Dias, the Catalan said: "Ruben Dias has an adductor injury. I don't know how long he'll be out for. He's been stable and able to play a lot of games, but this season it is what it is."
Meanwhile, Guardiola has confirmed that new signings Omar Marmoush, Abdukodir Khusanov and Vitor Reis will be in his matchday squad this weekend and could make their debut in some capacity against Chelsea.
All three players arrived at the Etihad earlier this week for a combined fee in the region of £123m, with 20-year-old centre-back Khusanov the first new arrival to be confirmed from Lens on Monday.
Nineteen-year-old defender Reis was then unveiled by the Citizens less than 24 hours later - joining from Palmeiras - while the arrival of 25-year-old attacker Marmoush from Eintracht Frankfurt was announced on Thursday morning.
Asked if they can all play against Chelsea, Guardiola replied: "Yes. They can play, but I don't know yet. We don't have players."
He continued: "We haven't trained much because of travelling. Omar Marmoush trained with us on Thursday, the others a little bit, but not altogether.
Marmoush, Khusanov, Reis available to face Chelsea
First time out in training 🫡 pic.twitter.com/xsedei6DGm
— Manchester City (@ManCity) January 24, 2025
"Vitor is young, he has a huge personality. He needs time. Khusanov has already settled, and playing in the French league he has handled tough, quick, fast players.
"He doesn't speak much English so communication is something we'll have to deal with. Omar will adapt quickly.
"Tomorrow [against Chelsea] we have just one central defender, and a little more because Khusanov is here, but against Club Brugge (in the Champions League next week) we'll have one or two available.
"That's why it's important for us, with the amount of games we have ahead of us, to have more and more of a squad. The best energy is when you can win games and play well."
Guardiola has admitted that Man City brought forward their plans to sign Marmoush due to the club's injury struggles this season, adding: "The reason we signed him was because we didn't do much last season because of the exceptional quality of the team.
"We anticipated doing it in three of four months, but with the number of injuries we have had, the club have seen his quality and potential so that's why we did it [in January]."
© Manchester City FC
Guardiola confirms Reis is ready to start for Man City
Reis, meanwhile, has only played 22 matches as a professional with Palmeiras, but Guardiola has insisted that the teenager is ready to start if called upon.
"If he's here with us, of course he can start! We'll see," he added. "The situations that we have at the back, I'm pretty sure they will have options soon. Maybe he will need more time to adapt, but in some positions all the seasons we have struggled - he's come for many years, not just for now.
"Of course for the situations we have in injuries and results, for young players it's not easy. It's always better coming in when things are going well, but I'm pretty sure he's a perspective player for the future for many years."
With Walker's exit from Man City imminent, Guardiola was asked if either Reis or Khusanov could play at right-back in the foreseeable future, and he replied: "I don't know. They could, but I don't know this weekend."
Man City currently sit fifth in the Premier League table and will be looking to leapfrog Enzo Maresca's Chelsea into fourth spot with a victory at the Etihad on Saturday.
Oliver Thomas
