'Happy New Year!' - Man City boss Pep Guardiola sets Kevin De Bruyne return date as assist king continues recovery from hamstring surgery

De Bruyne has remained out of action since mid-August after he was forced off in the 23rd minute of the club's Premier League season opener against Burnley. Now City boss Guardiola has provided an optimistic update on the Belgian's return date as he hinted that City fans should enjoy the festive period.

Speaking to reporters ahead of the club's Champions League fixture against RB Leipzig, Guardiola said: "I’d love to have him (De Bruyne) all season but he has had surgery and has to recover well. The end of December or [in the] new year will be a Happy New Year for everyone!"

The manager also provided updates on some of the other injury City stars including John Stones as he added: "We have training now but we’ll see this afternoon... I'm not optimistic about good news for some people to come back... John Stones is getting better... Not to play but maybe a few minutes for the next one."

The reigning Premier League champions have had several injury concerns in recent times. During their clash against Liverpool on Saturday, the 52-old-manager suggested that he could barely name a starting line-up as a number of players from his squad were suffering from a vomiting bug.

Having already qualified for the Champions League knockout stages after collecting 12 points from four matches, Guardiola is expected to introduce some fresh faces as the Sky Blues face RB Leipzig on Tuesday.