Gvardiol blow doesn’t mean Manchester City will be active in January transfer window, says Guardiola

Pep Guardiola has confirmed Josko Gvardiol will be out for a “long time”, adding to a defensive shortage, but insisted this does not necessarily mean Manchester City will be active during the January window.

Gvardiol fractured his shin during Sunday’s 1-1 draw with Chelsea, a match in which his compatriot Ruben Dias also suffered a hamstring injury that will keep him out for most of January.

Speaking ahead of tomorrow night’s game against Brighton, Guardiola said: “Dias? It’s a hamstring. Four to six weeks. Gvardiol is out for a long time.”

The forgotten man Stones is also missing

Adding to their absences is John Stones, who continues to struggle with niggling issues that have seen him miss most of the last season and a half.

Guardiola added: “He is a very important player for us. For a long time he was injured last season and this season apparently it is the same.

“He tries very hard to do everything but he is not in good shape.

“Everyone knows [the injury situation is difficult].

“We have Nathan [Ake] back, a central defender. Max Alleyne has returned from his loan spell at Watford. We appreciate Watford for what they have done for the young boy. This is the situation. We can cope.

Guardiola plays down talk of busy window for Manchester City

There has been speculation that City have joined the race for England centre-half Marc Guehi, who is likely to be available on a cut-price deal, with his contract at Crystal Palace expiring in the summer.

Liverpool and Bayern Munich are also interested, but Guardiola says the club must balance short-term needs with long-term sustainability.

“We have six or seven injured,” he said. “If you have 35 players in the team, it can’t be sustainable financially. You have to make our numbers financially, but I was really happy with the team we had in the pre-season and the season at the moment. That’s the way it is. Over the years, that happens sometimes.

“Josko and Ruben will be back soon, as well as John and the AFCON players. We will survive this period and face the next one. I am so confident and positive that we will succeed.”

City were the Premier League’s biggest spenders last January, spending around £180m to sign Omar Marmoush, Nico Gonzalez, Vitor Reis and Abdukodir Khusanov.

Guardiola does not expect a repeat this month, adding: “Maybe we will get something but it is completely different [to last season]. We are not going to buy four or five players like last season.

City go into the Brighton game having drawn their last two matches – against Sunderland and Chelsea – and have fallen six points behind leaders Arsenal as a result.