John Stones fitness update as Manchester City release fresh training photos | OneFootball

Manchester City defender John Stones has trained with Pep Guardiola’s first-team squad on Monday after recovering from injury.

The England international centre-back has been ruled out for a number of weeks after sustaining a muscular injury during Manchester City’s 1-0 FA Cup fourth round victory over Arsenal at the Etihad Stadium last month.

As such, the likes of Ruben Dias and Manuel Akanji in particular have seen significantly increased game time, and especially counted upon following Aymeric Laporte’s bout with illness following the 1-1 draw with Nottingham Forest.

As City put together their final preparations ahead of their FA Cup fifth round tie at Ashton Gate this week, new photos providing an insight into their training session at the City Football Academy has provided a key update on the fitness of John Stones.

The 28 year-old defender was seen training with the rest of the first-team squad as normal, indicating that he is not far away from making a full return to on-field action for Pep Guardiola’s side in the coming matches.

Stones was also in high-spirits as he enjoyed being back alongside his Manchester City teammates on the CFA surfaces, captured smiling alongside the club captain Ilkay Gundogan at one moment during the session.

City will look to continue their fight on three fronts on Tuesday night, with Bristol City their FA Cup fifth round opponents – after Pep Guardiola and his players successfully overcame Chelsea and Arsenal in successive rounds prior to this week’s tie.

Elsewhere, City continue to take on Arsenal in an intense battle for the Premier League title this season, while RB Leipzig will pose a threat to their Champions League hopes with a 1-1 scoreline carried into the second-leg of the last-16 at the Etihad Stadium in the coming weeks.