No changes for City

Manchester City boss Stuart Pearce is expected to name an unchanged side for tomorrow’s trip to Middlesbrough.

Apart from Claudio Reyna (broken ankle) and Danny Mills (shin) who are definitely ruled out, Pearce reported no more than a few bumps and bruises from Wednesday’s defiant performance against Chelsea.

It means Nedum Onuoha should continue at full-back, with Sun Jihai operating alongside Joey Barton in midfield as City look to pick up their first points of the festive period.

Provisional squad: James, De Vlieger, Onuoha, Sun, Sommeil, Dunne, Distin, Thatcher, Jordan, Sinclair, Croft, Barton, Ireland, Musampa, Cole, Vassell, Wright-Phillips, Fowler.