KOMPANY RULED OUT

The Manchester City defender Vincent Kompany is unlikely to be available for the match against Reading during the weekend, which would be a major blow for the manager Roberto Mancini. The Italian is already under pressure for falling seven points behind the leaders Manchester United in the table. Vincent Kompany has been one of the best players for City over the last few seasons. The captain of the team, his presence is sorely missed on many occasions by the club. The 26-year-old has been plagued by a number of injury problems this season. He is set to miss the match against Reading after yet another injury trouble.

Another problem for Mancini is the presence of the Ivory Coast international brothers Kolo Toure and Yaya Touré. Both are expected to depart for the 2013 African cup of nations in a few weeks time. They will not be available for up to a month, which will be a major headache for the manager. Yaya Toure has been one of the best players for the club since his £ 24 million arrival from Barcelona a few years ago. Meanwhile, the summer signing Jack Rodwell is also currently unavailable due to injury. The hamstring injury suffered by Milner means that he is also likely to be unavailable for this match.

“Yaya would be a big loss for us. He’s been amazing so far and has been the engine in midfield, so he would be missed. I’ve just had a little bit of a setback with my hamstring injury. It will probably be another few weeks, so I’m looking into the new year. I’m doing quite a lot of training at the minute though, so I’m keeping busy. It’s down to strengthening now, so I’m doing a lot of work in the gym and am just getting it right to prevent another injury,” said Rodwell.