• Premier League

Kompany ruled out of Chelsea tie

Vincent Kompany has been ruled out of Manchester City's clash with Chelsea on Sunday.

Kompany has missed their last two games with a calf injury and manager Manuel Pellegrini, who did not take him to Russia for Wednesday's Champions League win over CSKA Moscow, had hoped he would be able to return for the clash at Stamford Bridge.

But the City captain will not recover in time, with Pellegrini saying: "Vincent is still injured. He will not have a chance to play."

Midfielder Javi Garcia has deputised for Kompany in defence for the last two games but summer signing Martin Demichelis is also fit after a hamstring injury and could make a belated debut following his £4 million move from Atletico Madrid.

Jack Rodwell, who has only made one first-team appearance this season, is also back in contention.

Sergio Aguero goes into the game against Jose Mourinho's side having scored eight goals in his last six games, with doubles in the last week against both West Ham and CSKA Moscow.

And manager Pellegrini believes the in-form forward is one of the top five footballers on the planet.

"I always talk with Sergio [and tell him] that he for me is one of the five top players in the world and he must try to demonstrate it in every game he plays," Pellegrini said. "He is playing with more intensity when we don't have the ball. He has a lot of quality to make the difference."

But Pellegrini deflected the credit for Aguero's fine form, explaining: "He was an important player also in the past. With his goal Manchester City won the title [in 2012]. We hope in the future he will continue being a very important player for the club."

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