Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has plenty on his mind ahead of selecting his team for Saturday’s friendly fixture against Palermo at the Renzo Barbera Stadium in Sicily.

The Catalan coach is not expected to take a full squad to Italy, with Mateo Kovacic and Kalvin Phillips known to be two guaranteed absentees after undergoing surgery on Achilles injuries earlier this summer.

Nico O’Reilly missed Tuesday’s open training session due to a minor issue and will be assessed ahead of the trip to Palermo, while Guardiola will weigh up whether to select star lynchpin Rodri who has been gradually building up his fitness in preparation for City’s opening Premier League fixture away against Wolverhampton Wanderers on August 16.

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