Manchester City defender Josko Gvardiol will be out for “two or three weeks” with an ankle ligament problem, manager Pep Guardiola says.
Gvardiol, who became the world’s most expensive defender when he joined City for £77.6 million from RB Leipzig in August, missed the Uefa Champions League holders’ 3-1 win at Copenhagen in the first leg of their round of 16 tie.
The 22-year-old has started 16 of City’s 24 matches in the Premier League this season but was an unused substitute in their 2-0 home win over Everton on Saturday.
Gvardiol could be unavailable for six games including the Manchester derby on March 3 and the return match with the Danish side three days later, but the Cityzens will hope he is back for their trip to Liverpool on March 10.
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Fellow summer signing and Croatia international Mateo Kovacic is closer to being in contention and could feature when Chelsea visit Etihad Stadium in the top flight on Saturday, Guardiola said.
Kovacic was not part of the squad in Copenhagen or against the Toffees and played only seven minutes of City’s previous two matches.
“Kova is in the process to come back,” said Guardiola. “Thursday or Friday he will train with us and we will see how he feels.
“Unfortunately, now with the schedule we have we need players fit. Every game and training session we lose players, and that is not good.”
Man City injuries list: Grealish, Bernardo concerns
Playmaker Jack Grealish is being assessed after lasting 20 minutes on his first start in more than a month in Denmark.
Guardiola sounded less worried about an injury suffered by Bernardo during the first leg, although he said the midfielder had sustained a “big knock” to his ankle.
City host Brentford and visit Bournemouth in their two Premier League fixtures after their encounter with Chelsea.
