Triple winners Manchester City will have to do without Kevin De Bruyne for the next few weeks. The midfielder injured himself in the 3-0 Premier League opener at Burnley and received advice from his coach afterwards because of it.
What happened in the Champions League final against Inter Milan in mid-June has now happened again: Kevin De Bruyne, injured in the thigh, substituted before the break and now in the spectator role for now.
“He was unfortunately injured again,” said De Bruyne’s coach Pep Guardiola on Friday evening after the successful season opener at Burnley, in which he had already had to take his midfielder off the field midway through the first half. The Belgian had injured himself “in the same place and in the same position as in the Champions League”, Guardiola explained after the game and announced that his strategist would miss “a few weeks” from now on.
De Bruyne was forced to pull out of the Champions League final two months ago before half-time due to a torn muscle fibre in his thigh. The 32-year-old’s vulnerability to injury now prompted Guardiola to say: “He needs to clear his head and relax.”
Even without De Bruyne, ManCity completed their first task of the new season without too much difficulty. Burnley proved to be a courageous opponent, but former Dortmund player Erling Haaland set the course for victory early on (4.), before adding a second goal (36.). Rodri (75th), who had already decided the final of the royal class, had the last word.
