(Reuters) - Manchester City midfielder Ilkay Guendogan has set his sights on making a return to first-team action in the Premier League encounter against Liverpool on Sept. 9 as he nears full fitness following an extended injury layoff.
The Germany international, who injured his knee in December, played 20 minutes of City's 1-0 friendly loss to Girona in Spain on Tuesday but said there remained a long way to go to get fully match fit.
"I was out for eight months so there is no reason to rush now. When I feel good, ready and safe, I'm ready to play and try. That's also the target for the next weeks," he told City's website. (www.mancity.com)
"There's an international break in the next two weeks so plenty of time still to use that for training and maybe more games if that's possible.
"Hopefully after that break I will be ready to join the team fully. I want to be there when my manager and my team mates need me."
City, who beat promoted Brighton and Hove Albion 2-0 in their league opener last Saturday, host Everton on Monday.
(Reporting by Aditi Prakash in Bengaluru)
