Man City boss Pep Guardiola says that Kyle Walker will be available for selection when they take on Real Madrid on Wednesday.
The Treble winners host the Spanish giants at the Etihad Stadium for the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final tie, which kicks off at 8pm BST on Wednesday.
Walker missed the last four Man City matches, including the 3-3 with Real in the first leg, after picking up a hamstring injury while on international duty with England.
Guardiola sounded a word of caution about rushing the full-back back to action too soon after Saturday’s 5-1 win over Luton Town, but has now revealed that he will be in the matchday squad and could even start against Real.
“I am going to see at training,” the Catalan said in his pre-match press conference. “He has had one or two training sessions.
“He feels good with his mood. I don’t know if from the beginning, or from the bench, but he will be with us tomorrow.
“It is incredible good news for many reasons. Today at 4pm we train again so we will see.
“He is our captain and in last year’s matches played against players like Vinicius, Neymar and Kylian Mbappe and he knows how to defend them like nobody.”
Asked how big of a game this will be, Guardiola responded that it “always has been and always will be”.
“It’s Real Madrid and in this competition it is always a big game. It’s special for me. Of course it is.”
Man City and Real have met in the Champions League knockout stages in each of the last three seasons. The Premier League side won last year’s encounter on the way to their winning the competition for the first time, while Carlo Ancelotti’s men delivered a shock win in 2022 en route to a 14th crown.
