Manuel Pellegrini believes Kelechi Iheanacho has been good enough to play for Manchester City for a year and was only prevented from doing so by injury.
The striker stood out in Wednesday’s 5-1 win against Crystal Palace in the Capital One Cup as he scored one goal and assisted two others.
That followed his late winner as a substitute against Palace in a Premier League match at Selhurst Park in September, while he also had a goal harshly disallowed in the recent 5-1 thrashing of Bournemouth.
Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini is hopeful all of his injured players will return after the international break, including Sergio Aguero.
Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini is hopeful all of his injured players will return after the international break, including Sergio Aguero.
The 19-year-old has excited City fans with his early displays but his performances have come as no surprise to manager Pellegrini as he prepares for this weekend’s meeting with Norwich.
He said: “He didn’t impress me because I work with him every day, so I know what he can give to our team. Last season I think he was ready to do it.
“We talked about his work permits but unfortunately for him he had a very serious injury in his ankles. That is why he couldn’t play last season.
“Now he is ready and I am very happy for him to demonstrate what he can do. But it is just one game, he must repeat, he must improve.
“In the way he demonstrates what he can do, of course he has an option to start. It is not an easy position to start in this team because we have important players like David (Silva), like Kun (Aguero).
“But in this moment they are not fit and for me it just depends on the performance of the players who start.”
City have several injury absentees for their game with Norwich, but Pellegrini is hopeful of having everyone back by the time the next international break has passed.
That includes Sergio Aguero, who is missing at present alongside David Silva, Samir Nasri, Fabian Delph, Gael Clichy and Pablo Zabaleta.
Sergio Aguero is one of several players Manuel Pellegrini hopes will be back after the international break
Sergio Aguero is one of several players Manuel Pellegrini hopes will be back after the international break
Pellegrini added: “I never complain about the amount of players that are injured but we have too many players (injured).
“To continue playing this way and winning is very important for the trust that the squad have and I hope during the international break we will have all the players (back).
“I always say we have a squad, we don’t have a team. It’s impossible with just a team to try to win silverware. You need a strong squad.”
