Manchester City talisman Kevin De Bruyne is set to miss Saturday’s FA Cup semi-final against Liverpool with an ankle injury.
The Belgian’s problem is thought to be an impact injury rather than muscular, but club doctors will have a better grasp of timescales for his absence after more assessment.
Manager Pep Guardiola is likely to be missing both Kyle Walker and De Bruyne, whose performances have peaked as City reach the season’s home stretch hunting three trophies.
Kevin De Bruyne is expected to miss Manchester City’s FA Cup semi-final against Liverpool
Kyle Walker could also be absent from the clash at Wembley after being subbed on Wednesday
Guardiola is counting the cost of progressing past Atletico Madrid after Wednesday’s tempestuous draw in the Champions League quarter-finals.
Phil Foden played much of the second leg with a bandage on his head, and Walker went off with a similar issue to De Bruyne’s. The defender said he hoped the injury was not serious but was seen wearing a protective boot.
Guardiola is hampered going into the Wembley semi-final, with Wednesday proving a physical and emotional drain on his players.
The squad flew from Madrid to London on Thursday afternoon after a morning warm-down and are having their final training session at Millwall’s stadium, the Den, before meeting Liverpool for the second time in a week.
‘We have the team to go to the end to win everything,’ defender Aymeric Laporte said. ‘We know it will be tough, but I think we can do it and we will go for that. This week is something amazing that we probably don’t realise right now.
Pep Guardiola is counting the cost of a physical and bruising clash with Atletico Madrid
‘If everything goes how we want then it can be one of my greatest weeks as a professional.’
The ramifications of the carnage seen during the latter stages of the game against Atletico are yet to be determined, but UEFA are ready to investigate the matter.
Former City defender Stefan Savic’s role in melees on the pitch and in the tunnel will be scrutinised after he received widespread condemnation.
Savic chased Jack Grealish down the tunnel — quickly followed by four armed police — having pulled the forward’s hair and headbutted Raheem Sterling. The headbutt was not seen by German referee Daniel Siebert, who lost control of the tie.
Several other players and staff members on both sides had heated discussions which it was claimed became physical, with post-match footage and testimonies available for UEFA to review.
De Bruyne has been in superb form for City and will be hugely missed by Guardiola at Wembley
UEFA provisionally suspended Bodo/Glimt head coach Kjetil Knutsen and Roma goalkeeping coach Nuno Santos after the former was accused of attacking the latter in the tunnel last week and that could be used as a precedent over the coming days. Bodo/Glimt alleged Santos was the aggressor, taking their complaints to the police. Both are suspended until UEFA have reached a final ruling.
Atletico’s charge sheet is growing bigger, the club only just managing to suspend a partial stadium ban of 5,000 seats on the eve of the City match thanks to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
UEFA had closed one area of the Wanda Metropolitano after some of the club’s fans were captured allegedly performing fascist salutes during the first leg at the Etihad.
‘It was a learning curve for us,’ John Stones said of the match. ‘It will be a great experience for us in big games, knowing we have overcome this and that we can adapt to certain situations.
‘It will definitely help us grow as a team and I am really proud of the boys, how we played and the result after two legs.’
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