Hart 'must wait' says Pellegrini
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Manuel Pellegrini has indicated that Joe Hart is likely to remain on the Manchester City bench this weekend.
The England goalkeeper was dropped by his club boss earlier this month but impressed on international duty in midweek.
Hart made a number of good saves in England's friendly against Germany on Tuesday but that might not have been enough to earn a City recall.
Long-time deputy Costel Pantilimon has done little wrong since taking over and Pellegrini seems set to keep faith in the Romanian.
Pellegrini was asked numerous questions about the goalkeeping situation at a press conference to preview this weekend's game with Tottenham and eventually gave a clue as to his thinking.
The Chilean said: "I can't continue to always answer about Hart and Pantilimon.
"Both are very good goalkeepers. Now we are playing Pantilimon, so Hart must wait."
Prior to that, Pellegrini had stated his faith in Hart, but offered no guarantees that the 26-year-old could expect an imminent return.
He said: "We'll see what happens in the future. With all the players in the squad - not only the keepers - I have to choose the final starting 11 each week.
"We'll see - it depends on the performance of him and the performance of Pantilimon also."
Hart's club situation is a concern for England as he remains crucial to its World Cup plans.
Pellegrini, however, did think that Hart - who lost his place after a series of errors - did his cause plenty of good against Germany.
"It was very important for him to play with England," he said. "It was an important game for England against Germany, it is a good test. I think he did very well."
Pellegrini also feels Hart's attitude since he lost his place has been exemplary.
He said: "Joe didn't have any change when he was playing or on the bench. His attitude was really professional and very good for the team."
But Pellegrini has no doubt that Pantilimon is a capable replacement.
The former Timisoara keeper has played in the last two English Premier League games and in the last four in all competitions.
It represents a belated opportunity for the Romania international, who had previously only featured in domestic cup ties since joining the club in 2011.
Pellegrini said: "If I was worried about him he would not be here. We'd have changed him at the beginning of the year.
"He remains here because he is a good keeper as well."
The other major squad issue at the Etihad Stadium concerns captain Vincent Kompany, who remains on the sidelines with a thigh injury.
The influential defender has been sorely missed since the problem occurred in the victory over Everton seven weeks ago and, as with previous injuries, his spell out has lasted longer than anticipated.
Pellegrini had hoped the 27-year-old would be fit for the visit of Spurs on Sunday but that has now been ruled out.
He said: "Vincent is still working, recovering from his last injury. Maybe the next week he will work with the whole team."
Given the amount of time Kompany has spent out with muscle problems in the past two years, Pellegrini was repeatedly asked whether the matter was a serious concern.
"Of course," he said. "He is a very important player for the team but when we started the season we had a squad which would help us if this happened.
"We have other centre-backs who are playing at the moment but Vincent is always an important player.
"We are doing all the things we need to understand why he has so many injuries."
It has been suggested City might need to further strengthen its defensive resources in the January transfer window but Pellegrini did not want to discuss spending plans.
He said: "We'll see what happens in December but we hope Vincent can continue in a normal way until the end of the season."
There has been plenty of disruption at the back for City this season, not only because of Kompany's injury but Matija Nastasic and Martin Demichelis have also had time out.
Seven different centre-back pairings have been used so far, but Pellegrini sees tackling the difficulties as a regular part of his job.
He said: "The best thing is to have the same XI starting and win every game, to never make a change - but that's impossible."
Hart made a number of good saves in England's friendly against Germany on Tuesday but that might not have been enough to earn a City recall.
Long-time deputy Costel Pantilimon has done little wrong since taking over and Pellegrini seems set to keep faith in the Romanian.
Pellegrini was asked numerous questions about the goalkeeping situation at a press conference to preview this weekend's game with Tottenham and eventually gave a clue as to his thinking.
The Chilean said: "I can't continue to always answer about Hart and Pantilimon.
"Both are very good goalkeepers. Now we are playing Pantilimon, so Hart must wait."
Prior to that, Pellegrini had stated his faith in Hart, but offered no guarantees that the 26-year-old could expect an imminent return.
He said: "We'll see what happens in the future. With all the players in the squad - not only the keepers - I have to choose the final starting 11 each week.
"We'll see - it depends on the performance of him and the performance of Pantilimon also."
Hart's club situation is a concern for England as he remains crucial to its World Cup plans.
Pellegrini, however, did think that Hart - who lost his place after a series of errors - did his cause plenty of good against Germany.
"It was very important for him to play with England," he said. "It was an important game for England against Germany, it is a good test. I think he did very well."
Pellegrini also feels Hart's attitude since he lost his place has been exemplary.
He said: "Joe didn't have any change when he was playing or on the bench. His attitude was really professional and very good for the team."
But Pellegrini has no doubt that Pantilimon is a capable replacement.
The former Timisoara keeper has played in the last two English Premier League games and in the last four in all competitions.
It represents a belated opportunity for the Romania international, who had previously only featured in domestic cup ties since joining the club in 2011.
Pellegrini said: "If I was worried about him he would not be here. We'd have changed him at the beginning of the year.
"He remains here because he is a good keeper as well."
The other major squad issue at the Etihad Stadium concerns captain Vincent Kompany, who remains on the sidelines with a thigh injury.
The influential defender has been sorely missed since the problem occurred in the victory over Everton seven weeks ago and, as with previous injuries, his spell out has lasted longer than anticipated.
Pellegrini had hoped the 27-year-old would be fit for the visit of Spurs on Sunday but that has now been ruled out.
He said: "Vincent is still working, recovering from his last injury. Maybe the next week he will work with the whole team."
Given the amount of time Kompany has spent out with muscle problems in the past two years, Pellegrini was repeatedly asked whether the matter was a serious concern.
"Of course," he said. "He is a very important player for the team but when we started the season we had a squad which would help us if this happened.
"We have other centre-backs who are playing at the moment but Vincent is always an important player.
"We are doing all the things we need to understand why he has so many injuries."
It has been suggested City might need to further strengthen its defensive resources in the January transfer window but Pellegrini did not want to discuss spending plans.
He said: "We'll see what happens in December but we hope Vincent can continue in a normal way until the end of the season."
There has been plenty of disruption at the back for City this season, not only because of Kompany's injury but Matija Nastasic and Martin Demichelis have also had time out.
Seven different centre-back pairings have been used so far, but Pellegrini sees tackling the difficulties as a regular part of his job.
He said: "The best thing is to have the same XI starting and win every game, to never make a change - but that's impossible."
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