Manchester City have an injury crisis heading into Sunday’s derby against Manchester United, with their 12 doubts arguably forming a stronger team than the players definitely available to Pep Guardiola.
City striker Omar Marmoush was ruled out of the derby after picking up a knee injury on international duty with Egypt, joining Rayan Cherki in definitely missing the home fixture vs Manchester United.
John Stones, Rico Lewis, Rayan Ait-Nouri, Abdukodir Khusanov and Nico O’Reilly all withdrew from representing their respective countries this week, while Savinho and Mateo Kovacic have been injured and may not be fit.
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Omar Marmoush stretches to control the ball during an Egypt match
Photo by Ayman Aref/NurPhoto via Getty Images
Phil Foden and Josko Gvardiol were not selected for the week’s international fixtures due to their own fitness issues, giving Pep Guardiola plenty of selection headaches to contend with ahead of the must-win clash against United.
Man City’s ‘injured XI’ would arguably beat Ruben Amorim’s under-fire Manchester United team this weekend
Omar Marmoush and Rayan Cherki are definitely out, with Savinho back in training but lacking match fitness.
Phil Foden may also miss out for fitness reasons, having scored six times against United so far in his career. Mateo Kovacic and Rico Lewis would be defensive midfield options and both could be absent on Sunday.
Manchester City injury concerns vs Manchester United:
Omar Marmoush (knee) – ruled out
Rayan Cherki (thigh) – ruled out
John Stones (muscle) – doubtful
Phil Foden (fitness) – doubtful
Rayan Ait-Nouri (ankle) – doubtful
Abdukodir Khusanov (calf) – doubtful
Savinho (unknown) – doubtful, back in training
Josko Gvardiol (unknown) – doubtful
Mateo Kovacic (achilles) – doubtful
Rico Lewis (unspecified) – doubtful
Nico O’Reilly (unspecified) – doubtful
At the back, Guardiola will hope for positive news on John Stones, Abdukodir Khusanov, Josko Gvardiol and Rayan Ait-Nouri, offering a solid back four that could easily be used in a Premier League game if everyone were fit.
While Guardiola will have Donnarumma and James Trafford as his goalkeeper options, new third-choice goalkeeper Marcus Bettinelli has had fitness concerns so far this season and could be doubtful again.
Man City may only have 11 fit players to face Manchester United, including Erling Haaland after five goal haul for Norway
Pep Guardiola will offer an update on the fitness status of his squad on Friday afternoon, with City fans hoping for positive news given their limited fully fit options.
Erling Haaland of Manchester City celebrates scoring his team's third goal during the Premier League match between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Manchester City at Molineux
Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images
As it stands, Gianluigi Donnarumma can make his debut, but only Ruben Dias and Nathan Ake are his fit defensive options. Rodri and Tijjani Reijnders can play in midfield, with Nico Gonzalez as a back-up.
A trio of Oscar Bobb, Bernardo Silva and Jeremy Doku can support Erling Haaland, who is on the back of six goals and two assists for Norway this week.
Add James Trafford, and that only makes 11 fully fit players definitely available to Guardiola to face United. It should be enough given United’s struggles this season – but the missing players arguably create a stronger team, especially in defence.