Max Alleyne forced off with injury against Salford City in FA Cup fourth round | OneFootball

Manchester City defender Max Alleyne was hauled off with injury in the first-half of Saturday’s FA Cup fourth round tie with Salford City.

The Blues went ahead courtesy of a sixth minute own goal from Alfie Dorrington, with Guardiola making wholesale changes to the starting XI against the League Two visitors from Wednesday’s 3-0 Premier League win over Fulham.

City are fighting on all four fronts in the business end of the season, having avoided defeat in their last six games in all competitions as they turn a corner in the backdrop of a poor start to 2026.

Guardiola’s men cruised to a comfortable triumph in midweek courtesy of strikes from Antoine Semenyo, Nico O’Reilly and Erling Haaland in the first-half, with Arsenal slipping up against Brentford to allow City to move to four points adrift of the Premier League leaders.

Manchester City have turned their focus to the FA Cup fourth round this weekend ahead of next week’s Premier League visit from Newcastle United, who were put aside by the Blues in the Carabao Cup semi-final recently to set up a final date with Arsenal for March 22.

John Stones returned to the starting XI for Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday, with the 31-year-old England international handed the armband as he led the backline alongside academy graduate Max Alleyne.

Alleyne picked up an injury in the first-half as a result of a collision with Salford City’s Josh Austerfield, with Ryan McAidoo replacing the 20-year-old after 21 minutes.

Guardiola will be quizzed after the game for a verdict on Alleyne’s injury, with the Manchester City star not playing as much of late owing to the form shown by Abdukodir Khusanov and Marc Guehi as well as Ruben Dias’ recent return to action.

The Blues prioritised the addition of a central defender in the January transfer window after Dias and Josko Gvardiol suffered injuries in a 1-1 draw with Chelsea, forcing club officials to strengthen their pursuit of Guehi and closing a £20 million deal with Crystal Palace for the England international.

Alleyne was also recalled by executives at the Etihad Stadium midway through a season-long loan at Watford, with the young defender thrown into the deep end as he played regularly and stepped up against the likes of Manchester United and Bodo/Glimt in the absence of City’s regular starters.

Khusanov and Guehi have made the heart of the backline in recent weeks, though Guardiola has waxed lyrical of the quality and courage shown by Alleyne upon his emergency return to the north-west from the outskirts of London.

The extent of the injury sustained by the Bristol-born star remains to be seen, though Manchester City have plenty of firepower in defence to cope with Alleyne’s absence, especially with Dias back from injury.