Man City injury crisis shows Pep Guardiola what his summer transfer wishlist should look like

For not the first time this season, Manchester City are experiencing something of an injury crisis.

Following Sunday's 5-0 defeat of Newcastle at the Etihad Stadium, a result that put City three points ahead of Liverpool at the top of the Premier League table, Pep Guardiola revealed that defenders Kyle Walker, John Stones and Ruben Dias will all miss the rest of the season through injury.

The absences of Walker and Stones were already expected, but the substitution of Dias at half-time on Sunday, and the subsequent diagnosis, has dealt a fresh blow at a crucial point in the season.

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With Nathan Ake not fully match-fit, Aymeric Laporte is Guardiola's only fit centre-back, meaning Fernandinho will start alongside the Spain international for the trip to Wolves on Wednesday. The veteran Brazilian was excellent after replacing Dias on Sunday, but having to rely on a 37-year-old midfielder to play in defence in must-win games is far from ideal.

"In this situation, it’s not a problem, Rodri can play there," Guardiola offered as a positive spin on the situation. "We have the academy. Everyone has to do extra. Thirteen players and a half [he is counting Ake as half] for these games and everyone has to do more and more to help our absence. We arrive with problems and that’s all. Fernandinho did good and we are going to do it."

Given the investment in City's squad over the years and the quality of players at Guardiola's disposal, few unconnected with City feel any sympathy whatsoever. But contrary to popular belief, while City's squad is brilliant, it is not actually that deep in terms of numbers.

According to the CIES Football Observatory,