Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has told captain Vincent Kompany to put all his focus on regaining full fitness ahead of the new season.
The 30-year-old made only 14 appearances in the Premier League in 2015-16 as a result of persistent muscle injuries, while a thigh problem sustained in the Champions League semi-final defeat to Real Madrid forced him to miss the entirety of Belgium's Euro 2016 campaign.
"My dream for Vincent Kompany is to be fit," Guardiola said at his introductory news conference.
"He hasn't played many games in the last few years. The captain has a lot of experience, he is a magnificent central defender, but he has to be fit. I spoke to him and said 'just focus on your body'."
"I've known Yaya for a long time, he did very well at Barcelona and here as well," he said. "He's here, I count on him."
Guardiola says he is looking forward to helping Sterling recover the form which saw City pay £49million to sign him from Liverpool a year ago, and admits he would be eager to build a core of English players in his team - even though inflated transfer markets prices are a hindrance.
"They were criticised because they lost," he said of Hart and Sterling. "The money for Sterling is always in the mind of people, but I'm looking forward to working with him, to help him to show what a good player he is.
"In Barcelona, the basis was Catalan or Spanish players, and it was Germans at Bayern Munich. I'd like to work with English players here. Although they're so expensive here, it's not easy!"
