Man City handed major injury concern as Pep Guardiola updates fans on Kevin de Bruyne
Posted Thursday, March 05, 2020 by Express.co.uk
Man City news: Pep Guardiola updates fans on Kevin de Bruyne injury ahead of Man Utd match (Image: GETTY Images)
Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has been handed a major injury worry for the Premier League clash against Manchester United, as well as the Champions League tie against Real Madrid, as Kevin de Bruyne misses FA Cup tie with shoulder injury.
Manchester City could be without Kevin de Bruyne for the match against Manchester United this weekend, Pep Guardiola has warned. De Bruyne wasn't involved in Wednesday night's FA Cup clash against Sheffield Wednesday, with fans led to believe he was just being rested.
De Bruyne has been key to City's success this season, and is on course to break Thierry Henry's assist record for a single Premier League season.
He scored the winning goal for Guardiola's side at the Bernabeu last week, in the Champions League tie against Real Madrid.
The Belgian was left out of the 18-man squad for the trip to Hillsborough on Wednesday night.
Guardiola has now confirmed that De Bruyne was managing a back injury.
"Kevin had a problem here, he was not fit," said the City boss.
"He fell down in a bad position on his back. We don't know how long [he could be out]. I don't know."
De Bruyne was involved in a collision during the Carabao Cup final on Sunday.
He fell awkwardly on his back, which kept him out of Wednesday's match.
City head to Old Trafford this weekend to take on their arch rivals United.
The Citizens aren't playing for anything other than pride in the Manchester derby.
But Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's United are still vying to break into the Premier League's top four.
A defeat for United could have a lasting impact on their plan to qualify for next season's Champions League.
Up until now, De Bruyne has had a relatively injury-free campaign.
He picked up an ankle injury in October, which kept him out of the 2-0 home defeat to Wolves, but that was the only league match he missed.
But the midfielder has struggled with injuries throughout his career at City.
De Bruyne missed 12 matches in the 2015-2016 season with a knee injury.
Most notably, he missed out a total of 21 games in City's 'Centurions' season.
Meanwhile, City secured their place in the FA Cup quarter-final after a 1-0 win over Sheffield Wednesday.
They now face Newcastle United at St James' Park, with the prize of another trip to Wembley at stake.
"The important thing is that we are there and it's better to go to Newcastle than go out," said Guardiola. "We wanted to be in the draw and we are still alive. It is FA Cup.
"Now we are going to watch United against Derby. The challenge is the next game. We've spent a lot of mental energy in the last two weeks, but the players are ready to fight."
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