Huge blow: Man City dealt worrying injury setback before Madrid, it’s bad news for Pep - opinion

Manchester City have another big game ahead of them tonight as they welcome Real Madrid to the Etihad Stadium for their first-leg semi-final Champions League clash.

Having secured a convincing 5-1 victory over Watford in their previous Premier League outing, Pep Guardiola’s side will be heading into tonight’s big fixture full of confidence.

However, it seems as though there will be a concern over the availability of two key figures for the Manchester club, in particular, that will surely have a lot of supporters and Guardiola sweating.

Speaking in yesterday’s press conference, the City manager had this to say about the fitness of defensive duo Kyle Walker and John Stones.

He commented: “They are doubts, they didn’t train for the last week, ten days, John since Brighton. We will see how they feel and take a decision tomorrow [Tuesday].”

Taking into account how full-back Joao Cancelo will miss this evening’s clash through suspension, not having Walker available to play will surely come as a big concern for Guardiola.

As for Stones, the fact that he has a higher percentage for aerial duels (84.2) won out of anyone in the Premier League this season, not having him in the side to take on Real striker Karim Benzema could be a key factor in this match.

Benzema has been one of the best in the world this term, registering a whopping 39 goals and 13 assists.

Should the centre-back not have the right fitness to play against Carlo Ancelotti’s side, Guardiola will have to hope that the likes of Ruben Dias, Aymeric Laporte or Nathan Ake are able to fill in on this occasion. Either way, being without three defenders against such a potent threat is not ideal news.

For now, it appears as though it’s a case over everyone at the club