Man City’s Nathan Ake injured just three days before Real Madrid clash
Manchester City suffer an injury ahead of the Champions League semi-final with Real Madrid as Nathan Ake is forced out with an apparent calf injury against Leeds
- Nathan Ake went off the ball in the early stages of the second half
- After treatment, he was taken away and replaced by Kyle Walker
- Ake’s injury comes just three days before City travel to Real Madrid
Nathan Ake injured Manchester City just three days before their Champions League semi-final clash with Real Madrid when he limped in the second half of their league clash with Leeds.
After an ideal first half for City in which Ilkay Gundogan scored twice to give them a commanding lead, Ake went off the ball in the 54th minute and required treatment.
The Dutch defender appeared to be holding onto his left calf and was unable to continue, with Kyle Walker coming in to replace him.
Ake’s setback will be a concern for Pep Guardiola, who relied heavily on the versatile defender in the second half of the season.
Following the departure of Joao Cancelo on loan to Bayern Munich in January, Ake has proven his class as a full-back, while also capable of fitting into central defence.
Nathan Ake went off the ball and had to be substituted against Leeds in the second half
Ake carefully walked off after being substituted and is now in doubt for City’s next game against Real Madrid on Tuesday
He has established himself in Guardiola’s first team after being largely overlooked in previous seasons, and should start in Madrid on Tuesday night.
However, the Spanish coach may now be forced to reconsider as it looked like a muscle injury for Ake, and there is a very quick turnaround between games.
The 28-year-old only returned from a hamstring injury against West Ham midway through the week, having missed three games due to the problem.
City won all three games Ake was unavailable for, including their crucial clash with Arsenal and their FA Cup semi-final against Sheffield United.
A prolonged absence for Ake would be quite a blow, however, as Guardiola’s men are still chasing a historic treble and face a daunting list of matches in the coming weeks.
Guardiola will be worried about Ake’s latest setback, having only just returned from injury
