Frustrated Pep Guardiola Discusses Captain Vincent Kompany's Latest Injury Setback

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has admitted that he isn't sure when club captain Vincent Kompany will next be available, having been forced into substituting the centre-half only ten minutes into his side's 1-0 victory over Newcastle on Wednesday night.

The commanding Belgian defender has spent much of the last few years being sidelined through injury, and this season has been no different. His appearance against the Magpies came only as his tenth of the season - having suffered a complaint whilst on international duty earlier in the campaign.

And now, manager Pep seems to be at a loss - unsure of where to go from here having seen his captain fall victim to yet another injury:

"I don't know what is going to happen," Guardiola explained after the Newcastle victory (via BBC). "Unfortunately he is injured again."

The Spaniard seemed a frustrated figure in front of the journalists, with all of this occurring on the same day that Liverpool secured a £75m deal for Southampton's Virgil van Dijk - a reported target at centre back for City.

"Unfortunately we can't count on him for a long time," he continued.

However, while Kompany is forced back onto the injury table, his teammates continue to march on to the Premier League title.

Raheem Sterling's goal for City against Newcastle was enough to hand them the win, and after rivals Manchester United dropped points on Boxing Day against Burnley, City's 18th win in a row has increased their points gap at the top of the table.

The Citizens now sit a remarkable 15 points clear of United in the race for the Premier League title.