Jakobsen has not featured since he was subbed off in City’s 2-1 loss to Melbourne Victory in the derby.

The City boss said with finals approaching, it was responsible to make sure Jakobsen was fit.

“We’re being a bit more cautious than usual, we’d love to have him in because I think he’s the best central defender in the league,” Michael Valkanis said.

“He does make a big difference in our squad but we have to be patient and get it right.

“It’s taken longer than what we thought. It’s something we’ve got to get right because we know he’s missed out on quite a bit of football, but we can’t afford he misses out on finals.

“You can’t say he’s the difference (in winning games) but I think he’s very important, he’s a leader, experienced defender that can organise the people around him and in front of him.

“We’ve seen we won the FFA Cup with him in the line-up and he was very important starting out the season.”

Valkanis said it was a “no brainer” youngster Ruon Tongyik would come in for this Sunday’s clash against Central Coast Mariners.

Valkanis also defended Manny Muscat who copped criticism on social media for his performance last week against the Sky Blues.

Muscat gave away a penalty and earned himself a yellow card and just before half-time he received his marching orders for a foul on Alex Brosque.

“Manny shouldn’t (cop the blame) because against Melbourne Victory he was one of our best players playing in the same position,” he said.

“When you look at the first 40 minutes and look at how well the team did, Manny was playing very well.

“So it’s one of those moments where we gave away a penalty and could’ve done something else in terms of positioning before the ball got into the area. Up until then he was doing well.”

He also explained why Tongyik did not start in last week’s 3-1 loss to Sydney FC.

“Just one part of his game he needs to improve which we thought Sydney would target, I can’t say, I’ve said too much but I’m sure he’s fixed it now,” Valkanis joked.

“Ruon is a good young player we believe in, he’s the future of the club as well and he’ll fit in nicely with Ozzie Malik.”

“He is brave the way he plays, not many players can play like Ruon and that’s why he’s at this club and can play that sort of football.”