Manchester City handed fitness boost as key duo return to training ahead of UCL clash against Juventus – Reports
Manchester City have reportedly received a huge injury boost as two key players, Phil Foden and Mateo Kovacic, have returned to training. They could feature in their clash with Juventus at the Allianz Stadium in the UEFA Champions League on Wednesday.
Foden hasn’t played for Manchester City since the 2-0 defeat against Liverpool. He sat out City's 3-0 win over Nottingham Forest on December 4 because of bronchitis. It also ruled him out of the 1-1 draw with Crystal Palace on Saturday, December 7.
Kovacic, on the other hand, last played for City against Brighton & Hove Albion on November 9. He picked up an injury while on international duty with Croatia in the UEFA Nations League and has since missed all five matches since club football resumed.
Manchester City will play against Juventus in their sixth group game of the 2024-25 Champions League campaign on December 11. Ahead of the match, good news emerged from the team’s medical department. According to transfer expert Fabrizio Romano, Phil Foden and Mateo Kovacic both took part in the team training on Tuesday ahead of City’s flight to Italy.
This will come as music to the ears of Manchester City fans, as persistent injuries have worsened their recent poor run of form. Pep Guardiola’s men are going through a rough patch with just one win in their last eight matches across competitions.
Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola is happy for extra day to prepare for Juventus clash
Pep Guardiola is excited that Manchester City will have an extra day to prepare for their Champions League game at Juventus. The Spaniard said playing on Wednesday would give his players time to recover from Saturday’s (December 7) Premier League match against Crystal Palace.
He told the club’s website:
“My people have started to study [Juventus] and fortunately we don’t play on Tuesday, we play on Wednesday so we have one more day to recover these players because we don’t have players to come back,” he said.
“We go to Turin to play the most important team in Italy alongside Milan, Inter but in terms of Serie A the team who won the most. It’s a nice stadium and we’ll try to get a good result.
City are in the 17th position while Juventus are in the 19th position on the Champions League table, with both teams on the same point (8).