Manchester City's coach believes his side can cope without Yaya Toure against Barcelona on Tuesday's Champions League clash
Manchester City boss Manuel Pellegriniadmitted that Yaya Toure's absence against Barcelona will be a considerable loss, but added that he is confident his side can do well without him.
The Citizens will host Barcelona in the first-leg of the Champions League round of 16 on Tuesday, the last game Toure will miss through suspension.
The Ivorian midfielder is serving a three-match ban for a red card he received while playing against CSKA Moscow in the group stages phase.
“I always prefer to play with Yaya, he is a very important player and we always play better with Yaya,” The City manager was quoted as saying by Sky Sports.
“But we can do well without him because we did so against Bayern and Roma and we have a good squad to replace him.”
City have fared well in the previous two games without Toure, having defeated Bayern Munich 3-2 before easing to a 2-0 win over AS Roma.
African player of the year Toure produced a string of strong displays this season.
The 31-year-old has scored nine goals in 26 appearances so far with City in the Premier League. He has also helped Ivory Coast win their first Africa Cup of Nations title since 1992.
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