Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has provided an update on the fitness of Kevin De Bruyne and Nathan Ake ahead of Sunday's Premier League trip to Wolverhampton Wanderers.
The Citizens have had to cope without both players due to injury for some time, with Ake missing the last seven matches in all tournaments and De Bruyne sitting out of the last five games.
Ake, who last represented Man City in August, suffered a muscle injury on international duty with the Netherlands on September 10, while De Bruyne was forced off with a groin problem in a Champions League draw with Inter Milan just over a week later.
Guardiola revealed earlier this month that the Citizens duo may be fit to play after October's international break and could target a return to the matchday squad ahead of Sunday's match with Wolves.
Man City supporters were boosted by the news that Ake took part in team training on Thursday, but Guardiola has revealed that this weekend's game will likely come too soon for the defender, and also De Bruyne who is said to have trained even though he was not spotted on the grass on Thursday.
© Imago
Ake, De Bruyne set to miss Wolves clash
Asked at a press conference on Friday if either Ake or De Bruyne will be ready to return, Guardiola said: "I don't think so. No (setbacks), but not ready.
"They are training and in the last part and yesterday Nathan did his first training with the team. Maybe can travel but to start is not ready."
Guardiola has also provided a further update on the availability on the rest of his squad, adding: "Some of the Brazilians, Manu (Akanji) [had an issue after the international break].
"Tomorrow we will see how they feel. Tomorrow we will know exactly."
The Brazilians that Guardiola was referring two are goalkeeper Ederson and winger Savinho, who were both absent from training on Thursday after they returned late from international duty in South America after representing their country in World Cup qualifying.
As for Akanji, who played the full 90 minutes in both of Switzerland's UEFA Nations League games against Serbia and Denmark, he was also absent from training on Thursday.
© Imago
Guardiola: 'Wolves have got less points than they deserve'
Man City travel to Molineux on Sunday seeking to extend their unbeaten start to the season and could momentarily climb to the top of the Premier League table before leaders Liverpool face Chelsea later in the afternoon.
The Citizens have scored the most goals (17) in the league so far this term and come up against a struggling Wolves outfit who sit rock bottom of the table and have conceded a league-high 21 goals, six more than any other team in the division.
Guardiola is nevertheless expecting a challenging contest on the road and feels that Gary O'Neil's side are unfortunate to have only picked up one point from their opening seven matches.
"They got less points than they deserve, it's what I can see," said Guardiola. "Always have been tough with Wolves since Nuno Espirito Santo was the manager. All the time they have been exceptional."
Man City have won seven of their last eight Premier League meetings with Wolves, but the Old Gold did beat the reigning top-flight champions 2-1 at Molineux in September of last season.
Oliver Thomas
