Eight Manchester City stars return to training ahead of Manchester United clash after injury concerns | OneFootball

Pep Guardiola has received a significant boost to his selection options ahead of Manchester City’s clash with rivals Manchester United on Sunday afternoon.

The Manchester derby comes at a crucial point in the early Premier League season, with City juggling domestic ambitions alongside a looming UEFA Champions League tie against Napoli and a high-profile meeting with Arsenal.

Pep Guardiola’s squad has faced a wave of fitness and injury concerns in recent weeks, with several absentees impacting both league fixtures and international duty during the September break.

City were forced to navigate their last outing – a frustrating defeat to Brighton – with a somewhat depleted squad that highlighted the importance of squad depth. Rayan Ait-Nouri, John Stones, Rayan Cherki and Omar Marmoush have all been dealing with setbacks in recent weeks, while key figures like Phil Foden and Josko Gvardiol were kept out due to fitness problems.

That reality left manager Guardiola with difficult decisions, particularly in defensive and attacking rotations. These concerns have been closely monitored by both club medical staff and international federations, with some players even withdrawn from national duty to aid recovery.

Previous reports highlighted how Algeria held back Ait-Nouri to ensure a full return to fitness, while England released both Rico Lewis and John Stones during the break. The situation raised questions over whether Guardiola would have a full-strength group available for the derby.

Now, in the first training session back at the City Football Academy following the September international break, it is understood that all of Savinho, Phil Foden, Josko Gvardiol, Abdukodir Khusanov, Rico Lewis, Kalvin Phillips, Nico O’Reilly, and Marcus Bettinelli have all trained.

All eight of the Manchester City first-team stars have been subject to recent fitness and injury concerns, many of whom were ruled out of selection and match action for their respective national teams in the last two weeks.

The return of such a significant number of players offers Pep Guardiola fresh tactical options for a derby that could shape momentum ahead of a demanding run of fixtures.

Josko Gvardiol’s presence is particularly important given Manchester City’s defensive vulnerabilities without him, while Phil Foden’s creativity in attack has been missed in recent weeks.

The involvement of Savinho and Nico O’Reilly also gives Guardiola flexibility in rotating his forward line. Looking ahead, how the Catalan coach chooses to reintegrate returning players could prove decisive.

With Napoli and Arsenal both on the horizon, careful squad management will be crucial to balancing fitness and performance. Fans will hope the boost in available players translates into a confident display against Manchester United, kickstarting a stronger run of results after a turbulent start to the season.