Manchester City centre back Aymeric Laporte ruled out of trip to Chelsea with a hamstring problem

Manchester City are missing Aymeric Laporte for their crucial clash against Chelsea as the central defender has a minor hamstring injury. 

Pep Guardiola was already missing six players who are self-isolating having contracted Covid-19, with Eric Garcia the latest to pick up the virus (although the Spaniard had been sidelined with a leg injury and would have missed the trip to Stamford Bridge as a result). 

Laporte’s absence is yet another setback for the Frenchman, who was out for more than four months last season with a knee injury and was laid low by Covid at the start of this campaign.

Aymeric Laporte has picked up a minor hamstring injury and will play no part against Chelsea

The 26-year-old last played in the league during a frustrating 2-0 defeat to Tottenham on November 21 and a strong partnership has since formed between Ruben Dias and John Stones. 

Indeed, the duo have kept five successive clean sheets since then and Laporte’s only first-team games in the last month have been a Champions League dead rubber against Marseille and a 4-1 Carabao Cup win over Arsenal, scoring the team’s final goal at the Emirates.