City’s defensive crisis gets worse after Stones’ injury

Manchester City’s defensive woes have increased after John Stones pulled up injured in training ahead of tonight’s Champions League clash with Shakhtar Donetsk.

Manager Pep Guardiola fears he could be without the England centreback for up to six weeks after Stones suffered a thigh injury during a morning session in Kharkiv.

The Premier League champions are already without Aymeric Laporte until the new year and, after Vincent Kompany left at the end of last season, Nicolas Otamendi is now the club’s only fit senior centre-back.

Midfielder Fernandinho, who has been training as a defender in the early weeks of the campaign, is now set to be pressed into action as a makeshift centre-back in the Group C clash against Shakhtar.

At his pre-match press conference, Guardiola said: “John Stones was injured this morning. (He could be out) a month – four, five or six weeks. It is a muscular problem.”

Stones’ injury further weakens City as they attempt to win a third successive Premier League title and win Europe’s elite competition for the first time.

But Guardiola sees it as a challenge and he is determined to make the most of it.

He said: “It’s a big challenge. For me as a manager it is an incredible challenge.

Meanwhile Danny Rose and Serge Aurier are among a number of players who have not travelled with the Tottenham squad for their Champions League opener against Olympiacos.

Manager Mauricio Pochettino stated after the weekend’s victory at home to Crystal Palace, in which Rose and Aurier both started, that he would make changes to the side in Greece.

Juan Foyth and Giovani Lo Celso are injury absentees, as is Ryan Sessegnon who continues to struggle with a hamstring problem.

Olympiacos coach Pedro Martins has promised to take the game to the Premier League side.

“We need to be offensive, a team of quality and concentrate on the game,” the Portuguese said. “We know we are playing against a great team, but we need to show energy.

“We will make a strong statement. We will have our fans who will support us loudly. We are playing against a very good team. At this level even a single mistake could make us pay. We will be based on our defence which is our asset, but the whole team will defend.

“We need to be stable, decisive and passionate.”