Kevin De Bruyne says he is recovering faster than expected from a serious knee injury and may be available for Manchester City’s game at Bournemouth on 2 April.

De Bruyne tore knee ligaments in the Capital One Cup semi-final against Everton at the end of January but could return as City try to secure a top-four finish and progress to the Champions League semi-finals by knocking out Paris Saint-Germain.

He said: “My injury is going good. I am training very well and I think I’m ahead of schedule. I’m looking to be back after the international break. I think that’s a couple of weeks ahead.

“I have been training outside for almost two-and-a-half weeks with the physios, doing like one-and-a-half hour sessions a day, plus inside. For the moment I am not having any issues with any individual stuff, so I am doing fine.”

City are in fourth place a point ahead of West Ham United and Manchester United with eight matches left. “I think it’s always frustrating for a player not to be there but from the day it happened I switched my button and I am preparing myself to do well in the next couple of games that I will be there,” De Bruyne said.

“It’s been tough because we have lost a few games in the league and we are a little bit behind but we are there in the Champions League and looking forward to that and hopefully we can do well.”

Of meeting PSG he added: “I think it’s a very nice draw. PSG are a wonderful club. They are already champions in France and maybe that can be an advantage for us but if you want to win the Champions League you have to win against the big guns.”

City are 15 points behind Leicester City having played a game less. “Mathematically there’s always a chance. We are a lot of points behind with eight games to go. If we don’t get it, we have to try to be second and try to win as many games as possible to qualify for the Champions League next year,” the Belgium midfielder said.

“We have to be confident we can still do it. If in the end we don’t manage it and it’s not our fault, so be it, but we have to try all the games possible. I hate losing games. I want to win them.”