Manuel Pellegrini proud of his players after Sunderland victory

With Kompany on the field, City are undefeated in league play (6-2-0) while conceding just a single goal, but the contrast in defensive fortitude without the towering Belgian could not be starker.

Manchester City skipper Vincent Kompany described himself as “invincible” on Saturday despite seeing his latest injury comeback last just eight minutes.

City face Leicester City, the surprise Christmas leaders, on Monday when they will have a chance to climb above the Foxes, having moved to within three points of them on Saturday.

Kompany was on for only nine minutes before heading straight down the tunnel with a calf injury.

Dismissing the need to buy another defender, or other players, in the January transfer window, Pellegrini said: “We are trying to find the reason why he has so many injuries in his calf. Maybe it would have been better to win 7-1 and score more goals but if you tell me now we are going to win all the games 4-1 here this season, then I don’t have any problem”, Pellegrini said.

“He was ready to return”.

Manuel Pellegrini had hoped to ease the 29-year-old back into action and introduced him once the game was won against Sam Allardyce’s Sunderland.

Kompany’s absence was sorely felt in their 2-1 loss to Arsenal in the league at the Emirates, where mistakes from both defenders led to goals from Theo Walcott and Olivier Giroud.

Pellegrini is “hopeful” that Kompany will be fit for Boxing Day, says the Manchester Evening News. City have shipped 18 Premier League goals and are 4-0-5 with Kompany sidelined.

“I never criticise just one player, I try to analyse the performance of the team”. It was de Bruyne with yet another assist, this time for Sterling, who headed a terrific delivery past Vito Mannone – the Italian goalkeeper surprisingly chosen over Costel Pantilimon for the game.

“In the last three games we have gifted teams goals and found it hard to come back”.

Allardyce, who made six changes for the game, said: “We have got players who are saying they deserve a chance in the team and, ‘Why am I not playing when the team is struggling?'” I will get on with it and when I do come back.

It could have been four by 25 minutes too, Bony’s header from another free-kick deflecting off of teammate Eliaquim Mangala and wide of the target as this time they failed to convert. “All of them are very important”. I think the big teams have to stay at a high level, but sometimes it means nobody wants to win the league – it’s very unusual this league.

Sunderland, who host Liverpool on Wednesday, have their own mental hurdles to overcome, lying next to bottom of the Premier League after four successive defeats.

“One of the good things about tonight is that we kept a clean sheet after many games without”.