City set to be without Johnson

Manchester City midfielder Michael Johnson is almost certain to miss Thursday’s Premier League clash with Blackburn at Eastlands.

The England Under-21 international is suffering from an abdominal complaint and Sven-Goran Eriksson accepts he is unlikely to recover for the north-west derby.

Emile Mpenza will not train today with a minor muscle strain but should be fit.

Meanwhile, Eriksson has also confirmed young keeper Kasper Schmeichel will return to City once his loan spell at Cardiff ends on New Year’s Day.

Team (from): Hart, Isaksson, Corluka, Sun, Onuoha, Richards, Dunne, Garrido, Ball, Hamann, Fernandes, Johnson, Geovanni, Petrov, Elano, Bianchi, Vassell, Mpenza, Etuhu.