Manchester City remain without Yaya Toure and Wilfried Bony for their Premier League match against Stoke City on Wednesday evening.
The pair are due back from a triumphant Africa Cup of Nations campaign with the Ivory Coast but will not make the trip to the Britannia Stadium.
Citizens manager Manuel Pellegrini is keen to give both players a rest after a spell of six games in 15 days, which ended with a dramatic penalty-shootout victory over Ghana on Sunday.
Toure and Bony also have ceremonial duties to attend to in the Ivory Coast, but Pellegrini wants them back in training before the end of the week so that they can be considered for the visit of Newcastle United on February 21.
The English champions have no fixture this weekend after their shock FA Cup exit at the hands of Middlesbrough.
City have not won in five games during Toure's absence, while Bony is still waiting to make his debut for the club following his £27m move from Swansea City in January.
Joe Fish
