Are Man City right to shake up their Champions League squad?

Wilfried Bony is in for Man City

Manchester City have confirmed that new signing Wilfried Bony will be replacing Stevan Jovetic in their UEFA Champions League squad.

Bony signed for the Citizens for 28million on January 14 before jetting off to play for the Ivory Coast at the Africa Cup of Nations.

The 26-year-old signed a four-and-a-half-year deal at the Etihad Stadium but City fans have yet to see him in action due to his international commitments.

City boss Manuel Pellegrini had to submit his 21-man squad to UEFA and Montenegro international Jovetic will now have to content himself by competing for a place just in the Premier League, after City were dumped out of the FA Cup by Middlesbrough in the third round.

Bony's arrival in the January window means that City have one more foreign player in their squad than they are allowed.

This is due to City being punished for breaching UEFA's Financial Fair Play restrictions and are now forced to name one less foreign player in the squad.

City must now go with Bony, Sergio Aguero and Edin Dzeko for the final few months of the season, so was it the right decision by Pellegrini?

Jovetic missed the majority of last season due to calf and hamstring injuries. The 25-year-old has impressed during his limited game time but he has only scored 11 goals since his 22million move from Fiorentina in 2013.

The latest setback will now cast doubt on his future at the club but City were always expected to put Bony into the Champions League squad.

Bony joined Swansea for 12million in 2013 and he finished 2014 as the Premier League's top scorer in the calendar year with 20 goals.

The deal to bring him to Manchester sees Bony get to play in the Champions League for the first time. When he signed for the club, he was quick to admit that it was one of the factors behind the move.

He told Manchester City's website: "It's a great feeling for me, it's a big honour to be here and it's a great challenge. As a player it's always good to be part of one of the biggest clubs in the world and it's a good opportunity for me to be in that situation now - I'm really proud.

"I felt excited to wait for this moment and now it's come, it's fantastic.

"I think it's a great decision for me - Manchester City are in the Champions League. It's a motivation for me to give my maximum to be in that place."

Although Jovetic does possess plenty of quality, it is hard to argue with City's decision to put Bony in their European squad.

City face Barcelona on February 24 in the first leg of their last-16 tie. They face the Spanish giants again three weeks later and Pellegrini will need every one of his strikers to fire during that period.

Bony's power and presence should cause more problems for Barcelona, who have yet to experience his ability on the big stage.

His partnership with Aguero could prove to be deadly for the opposition as City try to beat one of the strongest teams in the competition.

Jovetic could still play his part in the upcoming league games against Hull City, Stoke, Newcastle United and Liverpool but Bony appears to be the man who will shine in Europe.

Chelsea have proved that a good squad is needed to compete on all fronts and City have failed to do that in Europe.

Bony will bring something different to the attack and City fans will be hoping it is enough to guide them into the next round.