Adebayor and Toure poised for Man City return

Manchester City could field returning African stars Emmanuel Adebayor and Kolo Toure in their League Cup semi-final second leg against Manchester United at Old Trafford on Wednesday.

Former Arsenal striker Adebayor returned to training Monday having been on the Togo bus that was fired upon during the ongoing African Nations Cup in Angola, in an incident that left their assistant coach and squad spokesman dead.

Togo withdrew from the tournament after the January 8 attack in the disputed enclave of Cabinda, for which the separatist Front for the Liberation of the Enclave of Cabinda (FLEC) claimed responsibility.

Toure, who like Adebayor used to play for Arsenal, finds himself back at Eastlands simply because African Nations Cup favourites Ivory Coast lost in the quarter-finals to Algeria.

“I spoke with Emmanuel yesterday (Monday),” City manager Roberto Mancini said Tuesday. “He is training with us now and I think he will be ready to be on the bench.”

The Italian added: “We won’t see Kolo until tomorrow (Wednesday) and I need to see how he has recovered before I decide whether he is also on the bench or whether he plays.

“I am sad for him that the Ivory Coast got knocked out – but I am happy for us,” Mancini said.

City, who haven’t won a major trophy since lifting the League Cup in 1976, have a 2-1 advantage after last week’s first leg at Eastlands.