Manchester City's Vincent Kompany facing month out

Manchester City captain Vincent Kompany faces a “minimum” lay-off of a month after re-injuring his calf against Dynamo Kiev in the Champions League on Tuesday, manager Manuel Pellegrini said.

Kompany and his fellow centre-back Nicolas Otamendi were both forced off by injury inside the first 23 minutes as City completed a 3-1 aggregate win with a 0-0 draw that took them into the quarter-finals.

While Pellegrini is hopeful that Otamendi will recover quickly, Belgium international Kompany faces a longer stretch on the sidelines after injuring his calf for the 14th time since 2008.

“Vincent unfortunately has another muscular injury in his calf, which he has had before,” Pellegrini told his post-match press conference.

“We’ll know tomorrow (Wednesday) or after tomorrow how serious it is. Usually with muscular injuries, minimum a month.”

On Otamendi’s injury, he added: “Otamendi has an important kick and can hopefully recover in the next couple of days.”

Eliaquim Mangala and Martin Demichelis took Kompany and Otamendi’s places against Dynamo at the Etihad Stadium.

The injuries arrive at an inconvenient time for Pellegrini, who has seen his side fall 12 points below Premier League leaders Leicester City after a return of one win from five games.

City’s hold on the fourth and final Champions League qualifying berth is also under threat from West Ham United and derby rivals Manchester United, who they welcome to the Etihad Stadium on Sunday.