Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has provided an injury update regarding Jack Grealish ahead of the Premier League clash with Crystal Palace.
The lowdown: Pegged back
Having made a perfect start to the new season, City looked on course to make it three wins from three when Ilkay Gundogan fired the champions into the lead against Newcastle last weekend.
However, the resilient hosts rallied and stormed into a 3-1 lead before Guardiola’s charges enjoyed a resurgence of their own to earn a 3-3 draw at St James’ Park.
The Blues were without Aymeric Laporte for the clash, whilst Nathan Ake went off injured in the first half to be replaced by a returning Ruben Dias.
One man also missing for the enthralling encounter was Grealish, and Guardiola has shed some light on when the England international could be returning to the fold…
The latest: ‘Won’t be ready’
Speaking during a pre-match press conference ahead of the visit of Palace to the Etihad Stadium, the boss hinted that the 26-year-old is unlikely to feature whilst also discussing the defensive options.
He said: “We thought about that (bringing in cover). But at the same time, Nathan is coming back soon and then in late September/October, Aymeric will be back, too.
“I am happy with that. But then maybe we wake up in the morning and think, ‘oh maybe we should have bought a central defender!’ Nathan will be out for not much time. Yesterday he started running.
“As for Jack, he trained alone. He feels better, but until we train, I can’t tell you – but my feeling is he won’t be ready for tomorrow.”
The verdict: Big blow
Although the likes of Phil Foden, Julian Alvarez and Bernando Silva can all cover for Grealish’s absence, given the rules now allow for five substitutes, it’s undoubtedly a blow not to have a player of the £100million ace’s ability at Guardiola’s disposal.
So far this term, the ex-Aston Villa man, labelled ‘incredible’ by Pep, has featured in three matches without directly contributing to a goal but scored six and provided four assists in 36 outings last season.
Meanwhile, the visitors will also be without a key talisman as Wilfried Zaha looks set to miss the meeting in Manchester with a leg injury sustained in their victory last weekend.