Manchester City may have suffered another setback in defense after Nathan Ake was forced off during their 3-1 FA Cup victory over Plymouth.
The Dutch defender was substituted at halftime in the fifth-round clash at the Etihad Stadium, with Ruben Dias coming on in his place.
With John Stones and Manuel Akanji already sidelined, City manager Pep Guardiola addressed Ake’s condition in his post-match press conference.
‘Now again we have central defenders out. I think we are going to miss Nathan.
‘I’m so grateful and thankful to the club for bringing (January signings Abdukodir) Khusanov and Vitor (Reis), otherwise we would not have any chance to qualify for the Champions League next season or fight for the FA Cup – impossible.
‘We would have just Ruben.
‘That’s why it is a miracle they are here to help us, because it happened all season, with the problems we had and still we have.’
The FA Cup remains Manchester City’s last opportunity for silverware this season after a disappointing campaign that saw them fall 20 points behind Premier League leaders Liverpool and exit the Champions League in the last-16 play-off.
City secured a spot in the quarter-finals with a comeback victory over Championship side Plymouth, who had previously stunned Liverpool and Brentford in earlier rounds.
Plymouth looked poised for another upset when Maksym Talovierov headed them into the lead in the 38th minute. However, City responded just before halftime as 19-year-old Nico O’Reilly equalized with a header. O’Reilly struck again in the 76th minute, and Kevin De Bruyne sealed the win late on with a close-range finish.
Guardiola, who made 11 changes for the tie, said: ‘I don’t take for granted the difficulty when you play an incredibly organised team.
‘It’s not a surprise what they have done against Liverpool. It’s difficult to challenge them because they are incredibly organised defensively.
‘I don’t take for granted how good we have done many, many things. I have the feeling that every step is getting better. Many good things happened. Jack (Grealish), Vitor played really good, and all of them, Nico. We had a lot of possession with patience.
‘I don’t know how many chances or shots (we had), maybe not on target due to the ball – the ball is difficult to bring where you want because sometimes this type of ball does whatever it wants.
But really, really pleased with the performance, to be again in the quarter-finals.
‘It has been a difficult year, we have not been good, it (winning the FA Cup) will not change that the season was not good. The season has not been good, but we can do it good for the future.
‘The mood is good, I think the team is playing the last month much better. Against Liverpool we played really good, and against Chelsea. Against Real Madrid (when they were knocked out of the Champions League) forget about it.
‘But step by step I see good things. Everybody is connected and we are going into the battle for the last 11 games to be in the Champions League next season.’
Plymouth boss Miron Muslic expressed immense pride in his team’s performance, despite their FA Cup exit. The Championship strugglers, currently second from bottom, delivered a spirited display against Manchester City.
‘I think we can only be disappointed with the result, but very proud of the performance,’ he said.
‘I think we gave Manchester City a proper game. It’s one of the best teams in the world, coached by the best coach in this sport.
‘We tried everything, we gave Manchester City a task and a big challenge, and I’m very proud of this.’
