Manchester City may lose Kalvin Phillips next month, but January is not expected to be a busy month for the world champions.

Kevin De Bruyne, Erling Haaland, and Jeremy Doku are all set to return from injury, and in the best-case scenario, John Stones, who was injured again against Everton, might also return. Over the previous three weeks, the city has had to weather a storm.

They will play nine games in December, more than any other Premier League team, and will be missing numerous key players for several of them. The Blues had a four-game losing streak before traveling to Saudi Arabia, but their Club World Cup victory has given them renewed confidence.

Pep Guardiola’s men are still just five points behind their opponents despite having played one fewer game, and they are set to welcome back their poster boys during a period when many Premier League players will be missing. While Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah, Arsenal’s Thomas Partey (if he recovers from injury), and Tottenham’s Yves Bissouma are all poised to go for the Africa Cup of Nations, City will retain all of their first-team talents in-house now that Algerian Riyad Mahrez has left.

Newcastle is the only other team that will not be sending any players to the African tournament. Liverpool, Tottenham, and Arsenal will each lose up to two players, with Nottingham Forest taking the biggest damage, perhaps losing eight players.

The finals were supposed to take place last summer, but the weather in host country Ivory Coast forced a six-month delay. This may have unintentionally given City a slight advantage in a season when they may be making steps towards protecting their Treble.

City begin 2024 with an FA Cup Third Round match at Huddersfield Town, followed by a trip to Newcastle, where AFCON absences will be irrelevant. However, Burnley could lose two players, including attacker Lyle Foster.

With the tournament continuing into February, Brentford may be without Yoane Wissa and Frank Onyeka for their home match against City, while Bryan Mbeumo is sidelined. Depending on whether teams advance in the competition, Mali’s Abdoulaye Doucoure and Senegal’s Idrissa Gueye might miss Everton’s visit to the Etihad on February 10.

During this time, De Bruyne, Haaland, and Doku may all come back into play. After a difficult month full of banana peels, City could be in for a fruitful start to the new year.