Petrov facing lengthy lay-off

Manchester City and Bulgaria winger Martin Petrov is facing a lengthy lay-off after suffering knee ligament damage, City boss Mark Hughes revealed on Friday.

Petrov, who only recently returned to the City side following a hamstring strain, was injured in his country's midweek draw with Georgia.

“Martin is going to see a couple more specialists over the weekend. But the view is, he has a significant injury and could be out for quite some time,” Hughes said.

“He has ligament damage and the initial scans do not look good. Martin had 10 minutes in one game and 20 minutes in another before going to play for his country.

“It is a big ask for players and they are at risk on occasions if they have not had the required time on the pitch beforehand.”

Hughes was expecting Brazilian forward Robinho back in Manchester on Friday after he was substituted with a thigh injury during a draw with Colombia in midweek.

“We have heard nothing from their medical department, so we are assuming he is fit and well,” said Hughes.

“We have seen the incident where he had the injury and had to come off. It does not look like a significant injury, just a clash.”

Robinho will have the weekend to recover his fitness and shake off his jet lag with City not in action until their Monday night clash with Newcastle at St James' Park.