Sergio Aguero injury fears calmed as Man City beat Southampton

Manuel Pellegrini played down concerns over Sergio Aguero's fitness after Manchester City's win over Southampton.

Pellegrini was seconds away from substituting Aguero when the striker appeared to land awkwardly on his ankle, and he was hobbling as Wilfried Bony came on to replace him.

But the manager, whose side won 3-1 to end a run of three matches without a victory, put City supporters' minds at rest after the game.

"It was important for Kun to have some more minutes - that's the third game in a row," Pellegrini said.

"I spoke with him before the game and we agreed he would play a maximum of 60-65 minutes. He has a kick on his heel but nothing important."

Pellegrini praised the performances of Raheem Sterling and Kevin De Bruyne, who scored one goal and set up two, and felt City were worthy winners despite a nervy spell either side of half-time when Saints got back to 2-1 after conceding twice early on.

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He said: "it was important to win three points at home against a team that was unbeaten away, a very difficult team to beat.

"We played very well for the first 45 minutes. Maybe when they scored we were a bit nervous until our third goal, but I'm happy about the performance and the result."

Fabian Delph scored City's second on his first start for the club, his goal coming seconds after Steven Davis had escaped punishment for a goal-line handball.

"I said some weeks ago Fabian would be a very important player for us," Pellegrini said. "Fortunately he scored a goal from that corner because before the corner it was a clear penalty and sending off.

"I'm not in charge of analysing the referee [Roger East] but it was a difficult game for him. I think he made too many mistakes."