John Stones could need surgery as Pep Guardiola confirms Man City star's lengthy absence
Pep Guardiola is bracing himself for bad news on John Stones' injury after the defender was forced off during Manchester City's defeat to Real Madrid in midweek
by Jacob Leeks · The MirrorJohn Stones is facing a lengthy stint on the sidelines and could require an operation, Pep Guardiola has confirmed.
Stones was forced off just eight minutes into City's defeat away at Real Madrid in the second leg of their Champions League last 16 clash on Wednesday night. The defender has suffered with a number of injuries in recent years.
A foot problem, among other issues, has restricted him to just six Premier League starts this season. It has been a tough campaign for City, who have seen a number of their backline sidelined.
Stones' fellow centre-back Manuel Akanji has also undergone surgery on a groin problem, rulling him out for up to 10 weeks. And Guardiola believes that Stones is looking at a similar timeframe before he will be able to return to the pitch.
Ahead of Sunday's clash with Liverpool, the City boss said: "He's [Stones] injured, a difficult one. Next hours, days we'll know if he needs surgery or not ... Yeah [a long period out], like Manu Akanji.
"We can compete with any team. We have two central defenders out for two to three months. The Premier League is massively important for us. In the Premier League we have played really good games.
"We are not stable but in other games such as against Newcastle, we have been at a high level. We will try to play a good game and the points that we need to stay up there to qualify [for the Champions League] next season."
Guardiola may also be without star striker Erling Haaland for Sunday's game. The Norwegian did not feature against Real Madrid and the City boss is expecting a late call to be made on his fitness, adding to his headaches.
"Don't know yet. Tomorrow, we'll know it," Guardiola said when he was asked for a status update on City's star striker. "Yeah, maybe [I'm hopeful] but I don't yet. We train today and tomorrow, he will test, I guess, but I don't know. We are in a not bad moment.
“Apart from Madrid, who were the better team and are a better team right now. I had the feeling in recent years in the Champions League we can compete with any team. Always we were there.
“In previous seasons against that team - we feel it, they feel it - we were there and, in many aspects, better than them. This time we couldn’t go through and we accept the reality. The games are different, strength of the opponent is different.
"We need to try and stay there and qualify next season for where we were on Wednesday. The schedule is the schedule. I never complain about that. Sometimes you have difficult ones. We play this one, then Spurs."
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