Manchester City's problems and reasons for festive cheer

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ESPN FC's Craig Burley and Stuart Holden examine Manchester City's chances of getting revenge against Barcelona in their Round of 16 Champions League tie.

With the enticing prospect of a two-game rematch with "old foes" Barcelona in the Champions League to look forward to, Blues fans can now start the run-up to the New Year in earnest.

There are a host of Premier League points on offer during the Christmas period, so what positives can City take from the season so far? And what might put a spanner in the works before the dreams of the fans can be realised?

As usual -- and entirely understandable if you follow Manchester City -- we start with the problems:

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1. Vincent Kompany's glass hamstrings: Does Manuel Pellegrini wrap the captain up in cotton wool and save him for big games to come or should he keep racing him back as he did last week, only to see him limp off with a hamstring injury against Leicester? Although Eliaquim Mangala and Martin Demichelis have made a decent effort to play together in the Belgian's absence, it is clear that Pellegrini is working towards a Kompany-Mangala partnership at the back. Some would say that both Demichelis and Mangala have looked better alongside each other than alongside their captain, but they may have a few weeks to practice as Kompany recovers.

2. Yaya Toure's imminent departure for the African Nations Cup. It is a biennial disruption to the manager's midfield plans, but again there is a silver lining to the cloud, as the partnership of Fernandinho and Fernando looked to be working excellently in Rome. Some would say that Yaya is best used further forward in any case, with this pair doing the dirty work in the engine room. A run of fixtures close together, in the cold, and this could be the perfect time to use them.

3. Sergio Aguero's absence. Of course the lack of the Argentine striker is damaging City's ability to destroy opponents. It is clear for all to see that a side containing Aguero (certainly in this season's form of 14 goals to date) is going to frighten the life out of even the best defences. But without him, City have lacked punch up front and look less threatening, less mobile and generally less effective. The quicker he returns the better, otherwise Christmas shopping may have to be directed towards the slightly higher priced presents.

4. The lack of striking cover. With Stevan Jovetic prone to injury, Edin Dzeko often indulging in short bursts of hibernation and 18-year-old Jose Angel Pozo too green to be relied upon for large chunks of the season, City have a clear shortage upfront as soon as Aguero is removed from the equation. To buy or not to buy, Manuel, that is the Christmas question.

There are of course, plenty of reasons for those in sky blue to be cheerful as the festive season arrives. Here are a few to balance it out:

1. The return of David Silva. What a pleasure to see the little midfielder skipping about like a spring lamb in Roma's Stadio Olimpico last week. With all the deftness of touch and lightness of step that you would more readily expect from a player five or six games into a comeback programme, Silva's short cameo in Italy proved that he is a player who makes a bigger difference to the side than even Aguero does up front.

2. That three point gap at the top of the table. Doesn't look so formidable anymore, does it? Chelsea do not look so powerful, either, now that we can all see them from close up following their first defeat to Newcastle. The way the season is shaping up, we should perhaps prepare for a neck-and-neck battle to the finishing line. Indeed the inevitable bad patch has yet to hit the Londoners, while City can say they have already had theirs. How Chelsea react to sudden loss of form or an injury crisis, especially if it occurs dangerously close the culmination of the season, will be fascinating to watch.

3. The FA Cup campaign. Another chance for silverware starts in January with a relatively comfortable tie against a side that has already shipped seven goals against City in the Capital One Cup this season -- Sheffield Wednesday. Just like last season, when the Blues were forced to face Wigan Athletic in both cup competitions, 2014-15 sees the club double up against the Yorkshiremen and a cup run would do wonders for confidence as the business end of the season arrives.

4. Familiar faces in the Champions League. City will have learned plenty of lessons from their two ties in Europe with Barcelona last season, namely to respect their opponents, keep their mouths shut when feeling hard done by, and not to fear a side that has passed the top of the mountain of excellence and now finds itself freewheeling gently down the opposite slope. This year's Barcelona are beatable and City would gain a huge boost if they were able to knock them out.