Glenn Hoddle has claimed that Manchester City did not do good enough business in the summer transfer window to ensure that they have adequate cover when key players are missing through injury.
City face Borussia Monchengladbach in their final Champions League group game on Tuesday evening as they look to pip Juventus to the top of Group D, and though Yaya Toure has returned to the side after injury, Manuel Pellegrini is still without stars such as Sergio Aguero and Vincent Kompany.
Without key players, City have slipped from the top of the Premier League table and have lost three of their last five matches in all competitions, and Hoddle believes that they did not sign well enough in the summer to boast the necessary strength in depth within their squad.
"For me, with [David] Silva and Aguero not playing and Kompany and Toure having been missing, without that spine the club not bought well," Hoddle told BT Sport.
"They have bought well with the top, top players that they have got, they have been magnificent. But I saw them against Stoke City and the players that are just on the periphery that have got to come in at times when these guys are injured are just not good enough."
City will win Group D if they beat Monchengladbach and Juventus fail to win against Sevilla in the group's other fixture on Tuesday.
Tom Nightingale
