Get the biggest City stories, analysis and transfer window updates delivered straight to your inbox Subscribe Thank you for subscribing We have more newsletters Show me See our privacy notice Invalid Email

Pep Guardiola could be without Kevin De Bruyne for Manchester City's trip to Southampton on Sunday after the midfielder was not spotted boarding the team's flight to the South Coast.

De Bruyne played 70 minutes of the Blues' 2-1 defeat at Leicester on Boxing Day as he stepped up his recovery from a second knee injury of the season.

Guardiola did not reference De Bruyne in his pre-match injury update, but confirmed that Fernandinho,Gabriel Jesus and Vincent Kompany would face late fitness tests to determine their availability for the game against the Premier League's 16th-placed side. All three players were seen by MEN photographers boarding City's plane at Manchester Airport.

City are looking to arrest a concerning slump in form that has seen three defeats in the last four league outings - the same number of losses that the previous 70 fixtures had garnered.

A pressing issue has been the absence of Fernandinho at the base of City's midfield, with Ilkay Gundogan and John Stones deputising in the 33-year-old's absence. Gundogan, who featured in the loss at the King Power Stadium, was not spotted with the travelling party to Southampton. Though unlikely, it is possible that the German, along with De Bruyne, have travelled separately from the squad.

Fabian Delph earned a three-game suspension for his straight red card at Leicester and Brahim Díaz, who has been rumoured to be nearing a move to Real Madrid, was not spotted with the travelling group despite training with the first team today.

The Blues are seven points adrift of league leaders Liverpool and Guardiola insists City will have to find ways to win without relying on Fernandinho and De Bruyne.

“Everybody is fit but some players have some problems,” he said of his side's injury concerns. “I’ve said many times how important he (Fernandinho) is – his position and qualities.

"Of course, he [Fernandinho] is so important, like Kevin De Bruyne. We have to find a solution to win games.

“We tried [to sign another midfielder in the summer] but the market was not there and it didn’t happen.”

Díaz is understood to have grown frustrated by a lack of first-team opportunities at the Etihad, but Guardiola refused to elaborate on speculation linking him with an imminent move to the Champions League holders.

"I don’t have any new info on that," he added. "I know they are in conversation but I don’t have any new info about the situation, today he trained with us."

Travelling squad in full:

Goalkeepers:

Ederson, Muric

Defenders:

Otamendi, Kompany, Stones, Danilo, Zinchenko, Walker, Laporte

Midfielders:

Bernardo, Fernandinho, Sterling, Mahrez, Foden, David Silva, Sané

Forwards:

Aguero, Gabriel Jesus

Not spotted:

Gundogan, De Bruyne, Díaz