Cherki, Gvardiol & Kovačić: early Man City injury news and expected return dates ahead of Manchester derbyplaceholder image
Cherki, Gvardiol & Kovačić: early Man City injury news and expected return dates ahead of Manchester derby | Getty Images
The latest Manchester City injury news - with updates on Rayan Cherki, Mateo Kovačić, Joško Gvardiol, Phil Foden and more.
Two defeats in a row mean that Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City will emerge from the international break with an urgent need to put some points on the board – but injuries to several potential starters won’t make life easier, especially with a derby match against Manchester United on the horizon.
Rayan Cherki, Joško Gvardiol, Mateo Kovačić and Savinho are among the players who could miss out when City welcome their old enemies to the Etihad on Sunday 14 September, with one of those injuries proving to be more severe than had been hoped.
We’ve got all the latest update on City’s stricken players below, along with their expected return dates when available.
How long will Rayan Cherki be out for?
Summer signing Cherki has impressed from the very start of his City career, scoring both in the Club World Cup and against Wolverhampton Wanderers on the opening day of the Premier League season – but he will have to wait some time to make any further impact due to a thigh injury which kept him out of the squad for the defeat to Brighton & Hove Albion.
France’s national team announced via social media that the injury was a damaged quadriceps and Guardiola further confirmed over the weekend that he will be “out for two months – seven or eight weeks,” indicating that the 22-year-old has likely sustained a grade two tear of the muscle.
That suggests that the most likely return date for Cherki will be the late October away game against Aston Villa, and he will certainly be unavailable until after the next international break. With perfect rehabilitation, he could be back in time to play some part against Everton a week earlier.
Kovačić & Gvardiol injury latest ahead of Manchester derby
While Cherki will certainly not be ready to experience his first Manchester derby next weekend, midfielder Kovačić and left-back Gvardiol are among the injured players who have some chance of playing a part in what now looks like a must-win match.
Kovačić is the less likely of the two to be involved. The combative Croatian hasn’t played a game since May due to an Achilles injury and Guardiola told the press at the start of the season that he would be back in “September or October, hopefully earlier.” Kovačić is now back in individual training but the club have not provided any updates, and that the game against Manchester United will probably come too soon.
The prognosis is more positive for his international team-mate Gvardiol, who has missed the last two matches due to an unspecified knock. Details on his condition are thin on the ground and he was left out of Croatia’s squad for the upcoming games against the Faroe Islands and Montenegro, but the issue is believed to be minor and there is a chance that he is ready to face United.
When will Savinho and Phil Foden be back from injury?
Two other players who have been unavailable for selection of late are Savinho and Phil Foden, but both players are expected to be available after the international break with neither player called up by their respective countries.
An unspecified pre-season injury sustained by Savinho was expected to keep him out for no more than a “few weeks”, according to Guardiola, and City’s head coach has indicated that he hopes to have the Brazilian back next weekend. Foden, meanwhile, has recovered from an ankle injury but was not deemed fully match fit for the Brighton game – he is expected to be ready in time for the derby.
Elsewhere, young defender Abdukodir Khusanov missed out against the Seagulls with a knock and is not a part of the Uzbek squad for their upcoming games, but it is believed that he should be fully fit by the time that domestic football resumes.
Reserve goalkeeper Marcus Bettinelli is recovering from a minor injury and may not be available if called upon, while Kalvin Phillips is not match fit following an Achilles injury.
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