Talk continues over the future of Pellegrini, but his side are still fighting on four fronts after overturning a two-goal deficit on Wednesday night in the League Cup.
Ross Barkley’s early goal put Everton 3-1 up in the tie, but City soon responded through Fernandinho’s deflected shot before Kevin De Bruyne came off the bench in the second half to ignite a fightback and send City through to a final with Liverpool next month.
De Bruyne’s goal and assist won the tie for City, but the night ended with a bitter taste for the club as the Belgian wideman fell awkwardly and had to be stretchered off with suspected knee and ankle ligament damage.
The deciding third goal was expertly headed home by Argentinian frontman Sergio Aguero, who also bagged a brace in the 2-2 draw at West Ham United on Saturday and now has seven goals in seven games.
Keeping Aguero fit is absolutely vital if City are going to take the lead in the Premier League title race and mount a better challenge in the Champions League, although a last-16 draw against Dynamo Kiev was certainly favourable when runaway Ligue 1 leaders Paris Saint-Germain could have come out of the pot.
Like Villa, City are yet to do any meaningful business this month and the injury to De Bruyne could force the club’s hand in the final days before the window shuts.
The Citizens have won this competition five times, but only one of those successes has come in recent years since they became one of England’s modern giants – a 1-0 win over Stoke City in 2011. They reached the final two years later, but were stunned by Wigan Athletic, who went on to be relegated from the top flight just days later.