Manchester City boss Manuel Pellegrini has highlighted the importance of having a fit Yaya Toure in his line-up.
The Ivory Coast midfielder had missed two matches with a thigh injury but returned to action with an assist and a goal in City's 2-0 win at Crystal Palace which put them within striking distance of the Premier League title.
Toure clipped a lovely ball into the path of Edin Dzeko for the Bosnian to head home early before curling a left-footed effort into the top corner late in the first half for his 19th league goal of the campaign.
With just three matches remaining in the season, and with City three points behind Liverpool with a game in hand, Pellegrini pointed out the significance of Toure's presence in the title pursuit.
"We hope, but we don't know," said Pellegrini.
"You saw him, he was very important for both goals.
"Yaya only worked with the team the last two days, that's why he didn't play more than 60 minutes.
"But he's a very important player for us.
"He's a top player, and in the 10 days he was injured he doesn't lose too much on his football condition.
"So he just played 60 minutes because he was very tired, but he's a very important player for us.
"The most important thing is that we don't depend on just one player.
"We have a squad and in every game I try to choose the best players that will fit for that moment.
"Having Yaya fit will be very important."
