Pep Guardiola has confirmed that Manchester City playmaker Kevin De Bruyne has "trained good" ahead of Saturday's Premier League clash against Leeds United at the Etihad Stadium.
The 31-year-old sustained a knock to his leg after starring in City's 4-1 win over title rivals Arsenal just over a week ago and has since missed the last two victories over Fulham and West Ham United.
Following the 3-0 win over the Hammers on Wednesday, De Bruyne took part in team training on Thursday and Guardiola has provided a positive update on his condition ahead of City's busy fixture schedule.
Speaking at a press conference on Friday, Guardiola said: "[De Bruyne] trained yesterday. He trained good. Today we are going to train and we are going to decide (if he can play against Leeds) after training.
Guardiola has also suggested that selecting De Bruyne in his starting lineup is "not a problem" despite having only just recovered from injury and with one eye on next Tuesday's Champions League semi-final against Real Madrid.
"Missing just one week or 10 days is not a problem, it's the same thing that happened with Nathan [Ake]. If he's fit he will play."
De Bruyne's update comes as a huge boost for the Citizens with the playmaker having enjoyed another stellar campaign in all competitions, scoring nine goals and registering 22 assists in 42 games.
One of the most notable changes to Guardiola's starting lineup in the win over West Ham was the inclusion of goalkeeper Stefan Ortega, who kept a clean sheet on his Premier League debut at the expense of Ederson.
Guardiola stated after the game that Ederson needed a rest, but the Brazilian is in contention to return between the sticks on Saturday against Leeds.
"He is ready to play like he was against West Ham," said Guardiola. "Tomorrow we'll decide."
The only Man City player who has played more minutes than Ederson across all tournaments so far this season is midfield lynchpin Rodri, who is another that Guardiola will assess in training before a decision is made on team selection.
Should Guardiola decide to rest Rodri, Kalvin Phillips could be handed his first Premier League start for Man City against his former club Leeds less than 12 months after swapping Elland Road for the Etihad in a £42m deal.
Phillips has endured a difficult debut campaign with the Citizens, making just eight substitute appearances in the top flight, but Guardiola believes that the 27-year-old is "always ready" to step in when called upon.
"I'm pretty sure, [Phillips is] always ready. Every player is ready," said the Catalan boss. "Again, doctors and sports scientists do an incredible job this season to keep players fit and we arrive at the end of the season to have almost all the players ready.
"Everyone has to be ready. Everyone's contribution will be important, whether it's lots of minutes or a few minutes."
Man City, who are currently enjoying a nine-game winning run in the Premier League, sit one point clear at the top of the table and a win over Leeds will see them increase their lead at the summit to four points before second-placed Arsenal travel to third-placed Newcastle United on Sunday. body check tags ::
