Manchester City have been handed a major boost by the return of captain Vincent Kompany ahead of the crucial home match against Tottenham on Sunday.
City’s most missed player has been infected by injuries all season; a persistent calf problem has limited him to just eight Premier League starts since the beginning of the season.
His latest attempt at a comeback from injury lasted just 9 minutes when he was subbed on in a 4-1 win against Sunderland. After over 2 months out with his calf problem, the Belgium centre-back has been training well and is now fully-fit to be in contention to face off against second-placed Spurs.
Manuel Pellegrini told a news conference:
We’ll see what the starting XI is – we’re not just thinking about one player and one game, we’re involved in a lot of competitions. Maybe we have a lot of criticism when we don’t play well but I’m happy with the squad overall this season. You’ve seen Kompany play for many years and I don’t have to say what qualities he brings, he’s one of the best defenders in the league. Every player must play a game when they’re 100%. Vincent has worked for three weeks with no problems. He played 45 minutes in a friendly with the Under-21s and I think he’s ready to play.
Also joining the leader in return is Spanish magician, David Silva. Fans feared the worst in light of his recent ankle injury and were anticipating his absence for the rest of the month. However, the playmaker hasn’t been put on Pellegrini’s current injury list.
Defeat to Leicester has seen the blues slip to fourth place and has put even more pressure on the Spurs game. Both players have been missing for large chunks of the season, and hopefully their recovery can provoke a reaction in the team.
According to physioroom.com, Manchester City have received the most injuries this season. Recent news of two more injuries maintains that unwanted record and tallies up a massive 53 injuries throughout the season.
Full-back Bacary Sagna (Knee) and Fabian Delph (Achilles) have joined a lengthy injury list containing Mangala, Nasri, Navas, De Bruyne and Bony.
Speaking to the press, Pellegrini said:
Bacary had last week a problem in his knee – some liquid in his knee. He needs an injection and one week at least to return to work. Delph is worse as he has a problem with his Achilles tendon. He needs six or seven weeks to recover. It’s difficult with so many injuries in the same position. Unfortunately, that’s part of the season and we must try to manage with the players we have.
