Man City star Kevin DE BRUYNE ‘will be scanned’ on Monday to reveal extent of hamstring injury and faces missing weeks of Premier League action
- Kevin de Bruyne is facing a long-term post-injury layoff
- The Manchester City midfielder will be scanned on Monday
- De Bruyne limped off in City’s season-opening win against Burnley
Kevin de Bruyne will reportedly undergo a scan on Monday to determine the extent of his latest injury after the midfielder hobbled in Manchester City’s Premier League opener.
City kicked off the new season with a 3-0 denouement of Vincent Kompany’s newly promoted Burnley at Turf Moor, but there was concern for De Bruyne as he was forced off in the first half.
The Belgian went down in the 23rd minute and had to be replaced by Mateo Kovacic as a suspected recurrence of a hamstring injury prematurely ended his first game of the new season.
City boss Pep Guardiola confirmed after the game that it is feared De Bruyne has suffered the same hamstring injury that ended his participation in the Champions League final and will now undergo a scan on Monday, according to the Athletic.
Guardiola said after Friday’s victory: “It depends on the extent of the injury, but he will be out for a few weeks.
Kevin de Bruyne will reportedly undergo a scan on Monday due to a hamstring injury
The Man City midfielder (centre) limped off in City’s opening day win against Burnley
‘He’s downstairs. We need to think, talk to the doctors, see what happened. He needs to relax, recover and come back.’
The extent of his earlier hamstring problem was largely hushed up as City’s players departed for celebrations of winning the Treble and summer holidays after achieving European glory in Istanbul.
De Bruyne had suffered a serious hamstring injury and although he did not require surgery, he needed plenty of rest before returning for pre-season training.
City boss Pep Guardiola has already confirmed he expects De Bruyne to be missing for weeks
The 32-year-old took part in a host of friendly warm-up games during City’s pre-season tour, but will now miss weeks of Premier League opening action and could be out for a longer period if scans show the injury has been resolved . worse than feared.
Guardiola’s early estimate that De Bruyne will be sidelined for weeks would mean he misses Wednesday’s Super Cup final with Sevilla and England’s top flight against Newcastle, Sheffield United and West Ham.
Should the Belgian playmaker be ruled out any longer, he could miss the start of City’s Champions League defense when the competition opens in September.
City should dive into the transfer market for a replacement midfielder if they do, as the club are still in talks to transfer Lucas Paqueta from West Ham.