John Stones injury will test Manchester City squad depth, admits Pep Guardiola
• City centre-back out for up to six weeks with hamstring injury
• Eliaquim Mangala to play in defence against Feyenoord in Champions League
Pep Guardiola believes the loss of John Stones will present Manchester City with a tough examination of their title credentials. Stones, whose outstanding form saw him play back-to-back 90-minute games for England against Germany and Brazil, now faces six weeks out with the hamstring injury sustained in the win at Leicester on Saturday.
The return of the captain, Vincent Kompany, after his own lay-off is timely but, given the Belgian’s patchy fitness record, the Premier League leaders do appear short of cover in central defence. Nicolás Otamendi is back after a one-game domestic ban but the only other specialist options are Eliaquim Mangala and largely untried youngster Tosin Adarabioyo.
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