We are in the midst of an international break, but the return of Premier League football – and Manchester City with it – is just a few days away. Before the weekend, we’ll give you a quick City injury update.
Upon the end of the break, City will take on their local rivals, Manchester United, at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday. Who will Pep Guardiola be able to call upon and who is on the sidelines?
Players out
Rayan Cherki
Rayan Cherki will be out of action for another couple of months – at the earliest, he will be back in action around early November.
One of City’s new summer signings, his absence certainly throws something of a spanner in Guardiola’s plans.
While not confirmed by the club, France’s media team indicated that he has suffered a quadricep tear.
Mateo Kovacic
Mateo Kovacic remains out of action after he underwent surgery for an achilles tendon injury during pre-season. As such, he has yet to play a minute of competitive football in 2025/26.
He could make his return to the first team in October, though this remains speculatory for now.
Josko Gvardiol
Information around Josko Gvardiol’s injury has been limited, though it is thought that he has suffered some sort of musclar leg injury.
It’s unclear when the Croatian international will be cleared to play, but he could make his return as early as later this month.
Savinho
Another player who has yet to feature this season. Pep Guardiola said that Savinho would be fit to play in a ‘few weeks’ back in August. Vaguely, this seems to indicate he could return soon.
Like Gvardiol, the true nature of Savinho’s injury is not clear – he was linked with a move to Tottenham towards the end of the summer transfer window.
Marcus Bettinelli
Marcus Bettinelli was brought in as a backup goalkeeper in the summer, but is currently on City’s lengthy injury list.
He suffered a knock back in August and has been kept out of the squad ever since as a result. It’s unclear when he will be fit to play again at this moment.
Kalvin Phillips
Kalvin Phillips has had a miserable run at Manchester City and his fortunes are showing no signs of a miraculous reversal at this stage.
Currently, the former Leeds United man is out with a long-term achilles issue and therefore despite the numerous rumours he was never gonna return to his old club.
There is no indication as to when Phillips will be fit to play again – the last update we had from Guardiola into his condition was back in May.
Players who remain doubts
Abdukodir Khusanov
Abdukodir Khusanov picked up a calf injury during the Sky Blues’ 2-1 loss against Brighton, in which the Uzbekistani international was withdrawn late on.
Guardiola believes Khusanov is ‘fine’, but nontheless, he didn’t play in any of Uzbekistan’s recent international fixtures as a precautionary measure.
Phil Foden
Phil Foden has struggled for fitness so far this season, but could finally return to the team in time for the Manchester Derby.
His only minutes this season came during a cameo appearance against Tottenham. He wasn’t included in the squad for City’s last game against Brighton, nor was he named in Thomas Tuchel’s England squad.
John Stones
John Stones arrived at England’s training camp with ‘minor muscle issues’ according to Thomas Tuchel. After an assessment, he was sent back to Manchester.
Stones’ injury isn’t thought to be serious – the decision to fly him home has been described as ‘precautionary’. As such, there is a chance that he’ll be involved on Sunday.
Rico Lewis
Rico Lewis withdrew from the England U21s squad with an unknown injury. An update into his status will be given before the weekend.
He will be assessed ahead of the weekend and could make an appearance, but nothing is confirmed as of yet.
Nico O’Reilly
Like Rico Lewis, Nico O’Reilly was also pulled out of the England U21 team with an injury that has yet to be disclosed.
As such, it’s difficult to determine whether O’Reilly will have a part to play against Manchester United or not.
Rayan Ait-Nouri
Rayan Ait-Nouri sustained an ankle injury during City’s 2-0 home defeat against Tottenham and has not played since. Furthermore, he also did not travel with the Algeria squad.
With that being said, Ait-Nouri could be fit to play against United on Sunday. More will be revealed closer to the game, though the injury is ‘not serious’ according to Guardiola.
Ruben Amorim and his United side go into the Derby with more questions than answers and the same can be said for Pep’s City so it should prove to be an interesting Manchester Derby.