Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola with inset of Rayan Cherki
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola with inset of Rayan Cherki
Manchester City have been dealt a big blow in the shape of Rayan Cherki suffering an injury that is set to rule him out for two months.
Rayan Cherki missed Manchester City’s 2-1 defeat against Brighton & Hove Albion at the weekend due to a thigh injury.
And to make things worse, Pep Guardiola recently confirmed that Cherki’s injury could keep him out of action for two months.
Man City will surely regret a decision they made just a few weeks ago in the wake of Cherki’s injury.
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Claudio Echeverri in action during Crystal Palace v Manchester City.
Photo by Visionhaus/Getty Images
Manchester City cannot recall Claudio Echeverri until January
In mid-August, Man City sanctioned Claudio Echeverri’s departure to Bayer Leverkusen on a loan deal until the end of the season.
There is no option or obligation to buy, which suggests City clearly see Echeverri as someone who could become a star for them in the future.
However, this process could have been expedited had Echeverri stayed at City, as he would have been a good shout to fill in for Cherki.
And to make things worse, The Athletic’s Jordan Campbell has reported that City cannot call him back right away.
There is a break clause in place, but that will only be valid in the January transfer window, wrote Campbell.
The second problem Manchester City have regarding Claudio Echeverri
City have made one mistake in letting Echeverri go on loan when they would have been better off keeping him in case of injury.
However, there’s another thing that has come back to haunt City on the Echeverri front.
The Citizens will have to play Leverkusen in the Champions League and, unlike in the Premier League, loan players are allowed to play against their parent clubs in the competition.
Therefore, not only have City deprived themselves of a great Cherki alternative in his absence, but Echeverri could go on to cause serious damage to their Champions League hopes.