Man City might have no choice but to play Phil Foden in his best position vs West Ham

Pep Guardiola is back at Manchester City, but three of his first-teamers are not.

John Stones and Jack Grealish were absent from the England squad with injuries, with both earmarked for returns after the international break. However, neither trained on Thursday suggesting they are not quite ready to return from their respective muscle injuries.

Also missing on Thursday was Mateo Kovacic, who didn't play a minute for Croatia over the last fortnight with complaints of a minor back injury. Reports in his home country say he could be set for a short spell on the sidelines, with Guardiola set to offer an update on the trio when he faces the media on Friday.

Without Kovacic, and the already injured Kevin De Bruyne, City's midfield options are thin. Guardiola could call up new signing Matheus Nunes, but he has only trained with him for three days, while Kalvin Phillips has never been trusted in a tricky Premier League game despite looking okay for England on Tuesday.

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The likely replacement for Kovacic will be Bernardo Silva, capable of playing in midfield, and versatile across various positions. However, Bernardo has mostly played off the right-wing this season when selected and has looked good there. If Grealish is out, that limits the wide options, with Jeremy Doku likely to play left again.

Even after returning from a high altitude qualifier in Bolivia on Tuesday, Julian Alvarez may be needed to play just behind Erling Haaland once again, purely due to lack of numbers if Grealish and Kovacic are out.

That leaves Phil Foden, whose position has been the subject of plenty of discussion after Gareth Southgate refused to commit to playing him centrally because