Kevin De Bruyne is set to be assessed for Manchester City’s Premier League decider against Arsenal on Sunday after picking up injury in their goalless Champions League tie with Inter Milan.
The Belgium international, 33, was forced off at half-time after appearing to injure himself during a first-half run where he was challenged by Inter goalkeeper Yann Sommer. Despite receiving treatment, De Bruyne continued until the break but did not return for the second half.
City manager Pep Guardiola has admitted uncertainty over De Bruyne’s availability for the weekend.
“I don’t know (what the problem is),” Guardiola said. “I haven’t spoken to the doctors yet. We will evaluate tonight, maybe tomorrow. I will have more information tomorrow.”
Sunday’s match against Arsenal will be enough of a test for City, as Mikel Arteta’s side are second in the table and just two points behind, having finished runners-up for the past two seasons.
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Apart from the possible absence of De Bruyne, City have yet to see several key players return to full fitness. Rodri made his first start of the season against Inter, while Phil Foden, who came on as a second-half substitute, has yet to complete a full 90 minutes this campaign. Kyle Walker did not feature in midweek, and Ilkay Gundogan has only started once so far this season, in Saturday’s 2-1 win against Brentford. Defender Nathan Ake, meanwhile, is expected to be out until the next international break with a muscle injury.
Despite the stalemate against Inter, Guardiola remained optimistic about his team’s performance.
“We faced a really, really tough team – the champions from Italy. A class team in all departments,” he added.
“I’m really, really pleased with the game we played. I liked everything about my team today, everything.
“We would have preferred to win – there are still seven games to go. We’ll see what happens.”
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(Nick Potts/PA Images via Getty Images)
