Manchester City open their Champions League campaign with an away trip to Portuguese giants FC Porto at the Estadio do Dragao
Jeremy Doku
Jeremy Doku will not be available for Man City's Champions League clash with FC Porto(Image: Getty Images)
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Nico O'Reilly and Jeremy Doku are set to miss Manchester City's Champions League opener against FC Porto as they recover from injuries. Enzo Maresca's side travelled to the north of Portugal on Monday without the pair.
O'Reilly withdrew from the warm‑up ahead of his side's win over Coventry City at the weekend, while Doku picked up his injury during the Community Shield final against Arsenal last month. Neither player trained with the squad, but Maresca remains optimistic about O'Reilly, with the midfielder's issue not thought to be serious with a chance he could feature in Sunday's Manchester derby.
As for Doku, Maresca confirmed he is 'back', though the trip to Porto comes too soon for him, and he remains a doubt for Sunday. "He is back. I don't know if he can be available for the weekend [vs Manchester United], but slowly, slowly he is back," said Maresca.
City start another Champions League as one of the favourites for the competition, and expectations have been raised further with a club record spend of nearly £430m this summer. "I said many times when you are Manchester City the expectations are always higher," Maresca added.
"I like more to be focused on the day by day, it is very complicated to think where we could be in February, March, April. For me the most important thing is to see that we are improving game after game and then we will see."
As for the hosts, Dragons boss Francesco Farioli is managing a lengthy injury list. Former Southampton and Aston Villa defender Jan Bednarek will serve a suspension after being sent off against Nottingham Forest in the Europa League last season, while Victor Froholdt will also miss out after being knocked unconscious during Friday night’s win over Moreirense in Liga Portugal.
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Other absentees include one-time Chelsea‑target Samu, youngster Oskar Pietuszewski, Zaidu, Vasco Sousa and Andre Miranda.
"We are missing Bednarek, Froholdt and Samu, in addition to the absences of Zaidu and Oskar, important players," Farioli said in his press conference. "It will not be possible to have everyone, but it is an opportunity for the group to show their work and show that they can react [positively] to the absences."
The Liga Portugal holders brought in six new signings over the summer, with only 18‑year‑old Gabriel Mec missing out on inclusion in their European squad list.
Ahead of facing City, the Italian boss added: "We will face one of the main candidates for the title, with great respect for his individual quality and organisation, but also for the legacy built by Pep Guardiola.
"With Maresca they are in a new cycle. Let's do our best, knowing that whenever we play at the Dragao, something special can happen."