Leroy Sané closing in on Manchester City return
Pep Guardiola expected to be without Leroy Sane for up to seven weeks with ankle ligament damage but the winger is progressing well.
Manchester City winger Leroy Sané could be set for an ahead-of-schedule return from ankle ligament damage. Sané was sidelined following a rash challenge from Cardiff City's Joe Bennett in a 2-0 FA Cup fourth-round victory two weeks ago. The initial prognosis was for the Germany international to be out for between six to seven weeks, ruling him out of the EFL Carabao Cup final against Arsenal at the end of this month.
Sané on the mend
But Sané was photographed working on the training pitches at his club's training base on Thursday and, although Guardiola insisted that merely amounted to running drills, he did not entirely rule him out of the Champions League last-16 tie against Basel. The Premier League leaders travel to Switzerland for the first leg next week and, asked whether Sané would play, Guardiola replied: "I don't think so. He is much better but he is still not ready."
Top scorer Sergio Agüero is expected to once again lead the line for City when Leicester City visit the Etihad Stadium on Saturday but striker Gabriel Jesus is closing in on a return from medial knee ligament damage.
"I would like to give [Agüero] a rest sometimes but he is the only striker we have," Guardiola added, with commitments across four competitions on the agenda this month. "He is making a huge effort and doing really well. Gabriel is coming back soon. Maybe in one week, 10 days or two weeks he will be ready."