Manchester City will be without the presence of John Stones at Arsenal this weekend, despite the England international’s return to first-team training this week.
Stones has not played for the Blues since the Community Shield in August due to a number of injury issues, and returned to training this week as he aims to prove his fitness.
The England defender was named on the bench for the Champions League game against RB Leipzig and also was named in Gareth Southgate’s squad for the national team for those upcoming games.
Speaking in his pre-match press conference on Friday, Pep Guardiola gave updates on his Manchester City squad to face Arsenal this weekend.
The most significant development is that John Stones won’t be ready to start against the Gunners, despite making the bench against RB Leipzig in midweek.
“No. He’s not ready to play,” Guardiola said. “Maybe for the national team (over the international break), but not us.”
Kevin De Bruyne also remains absent with a hamstring injury, though Guardiola had some positive news on the Belgian’s recovery.
“I see him every day and he’s getting better, and his mood is good,” Guardiola revealed. “Hopefully (he will be back), sooner than expected he will be back.”
Rodri will also miss the Arsenal match, with City accepting a three-match ban after his red card in a recent fixture against Nottingham Forest.
The 27-year-old has already missed matches against Wolves and Newcastle United through suspension, with City losing on both occasions.
He came back into the team in midweek to help City to a 3-1 win over RB Leipzig, as domestic suspensions don’t carry over into European competition. But he’ll be out again this weekend.
