Mendy gets a smooth operation for injured knee

Manchester City defender Benjamin Mendy successfully underwent a knee surgery on Wednesday, the Premier League champions announced.

The 24-year-old will expected to face a lengthy time frame away from the pitch but it will certainly not be as long as the injury setback that made him miss the majority of last season after rupturing the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee against Crystal Palace in September 2017.

A statement from City read: "Manchester City can confirm that Benjamin Mendy has undergone surgery on his left knee tonight. The Frenchman, who played the full 90 minutes in the weekend's 3-1 win over rivals Manchester United, travelled to join up with his national team before withdrawing from the squad."

"The 24-year-old defender attended Dr Cugat's clinic in Barcelona where scans revealed that surgery was required. That surgery was conducted on Wednesday evening and everyone at Manchester City wishes Benjamin a speedy recovery," added the statement.

Fabian Delph, who is set to captain England on Thursday night, can fill in after recovering from his own injury problems, as well as Manchester City's Ukrainian defender Oleksandr Zinchenko.

City are already out without some big names such as Kevin De Bruyne, who has has been ruled out for a months with a knee injury after already missing the first two months of the season, as well as Chilean Goalkeeper Claudio Bravo still yet to return from a six months spell ankle problem.