Champions League final: Deja vu as Manchester City lose Kevin de Bruyne to hamstring injury with Phil Foden sent on
/dnl.tntsports.co.uk/sd/img/placeholder/tnt_logo_1x1.png){kind=logo}
Updated 10/06/2023 at 23:15 GMT+1
Manchester City lost star playmaker Kevin de Bruyne with just 35 minutes of the Champions League final against Inter Milan played after the Belgian suffered an apparent hamstring injury. De Bruyne tried to run off the issue after initially going down but, following an uncharacteristically mis-hit pass that ran out of play, he signalled to the bench that he could not go on.
Guardiola has injury worries ahead of Manchester City’s FA Cup final with United
Manchester City suffered a major blow to their hopes of winning a maiden Champions League title just 35 minutes into the final in Istanbul as star midfielder Kevin de Bruyne was forced off with an apparent hamstring injury.
De Bruyne, the key playmaker of Pep Guardiola's all-conquering side, went down in the 31st minute of the match and underwent some treatment before attempting to continue.
/origin-imgresizer.tntsports.io/2023/05/26/3712491-75539748-2560-1440.jpg)
Guardiola has injury worries ahead of Manchester City’s FA Cup final with United
Phil Foden was immediately sent to warm up by Guardiola, shuttling up and down the sideline as De Bruyne attempted to run off the issue.
The Belgian remained involved, pushing high up the pitch alongside Erling Haaland in attack, but eventually was forced to concede that he could not go on.
Only after an uncharacteristically mis-hit pass that ran out of play did De Bruyne signal to the bench that would need to be replaced.
City were able to call on England midfield star Foden to replace the Belgian but it remains a significant loss.
De Bruyne had been heavily involved in the early stages for City, but he gave the first sign of discomfort shortly after a powerful, right-footed shot in the 28th minute.
With De Bruyne sitting on the bench looking on, Inter managed to keep City at bay until halftime.
This marks the second Champions League final in three seasons that De Bruyne has been forced out of with injury. In 2021, during the final City lost to Chelsea in Porto, the Belgian was forced off after suffering a knock to the head in a clash with Antonio Rudiger.
After the match, basking in the glow of victory, De Bruyne spoke to BT. He revealed that he had been dealing with the hamstring issue for some time in the build-up to the final.
He said: "It has been a hard two months for me. I have had a lot of issues with my hamstring and it snapped today. It is a shame because I was feeling good in the first half an hour. But the team was good enough. It wasn’t the best game but finals are always difficult. It is huge, the amount of games you have to play to win the Treble.”
The 31-year-old produced an astonishing 32 assists this season as he helped City to a domestic double of Premier League and FA Cup titles.
On June 10 and 11 strap yourself in for a live sport rollercoaster ride. With the finals of Roland-Garros, 24 Hours of Le Mans, Speedway Grand Prix, the UCI Mountain Bike World Series, the Criterium du Dauphine, MotoGP and the Champions League final, it’s the Weekend of Champions live on Eurosport, discovery+ and BT Sport.
Related Topics
Share this article
Advertisement
Advertisement