Phil Foden was injured when he scored twice and won the man of the game against Burnley.
The Manchester City midfielder paid the price for his exploits against the Clarets. His leg swelled the next day, forcing him to miss the trip to Chelsea on Thursday when the Blues finally gave up their Premier League crown with a defeat.
But Foden is fighting to be ready for the FA Cup quarter-finals in Newcastle on Sunday.
Guardiola announced that Foden had taken up the problem – “a big kick” – in the opening phase of the 5-0 win against Burnley on Monday evening, but continued to play.
In addition to his two goals and an all-action appearance, the 20-year-old also played an exquisite role in David Silva’s goal, with an exquisite no-look return pass to free Bernardo Silva.
He was arguably the best City player since the start of the season, scoring three goals in two games and announcing that he is taking another step forward in his development.
But City faces another central defender dilemma in Newcastle – they have to go without suspended Fernandinho and John Stones, who have not yet figured out after an injury in training.
“He is still injured,” said Guardiola. “We knew after the ban due to lack of preparation.”
Guardiola is also likely to be without Sergio Aguero for the rest of the season after undergoing knee surgery on Wednesday.
They also lost Joao Cancelo to a muscle problem, which made him doubt the cup balance.
“We knew it – lack of preparation and we have to survive this amount of games in a short time,” he said. “Survive and try to qualify for the Champions League and arrive safely on Sunday.”
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