The Premier League champions were forced to replace defender Manuel Akanji midway through the second half after moving to the top of the table with a narrow victory against Leicester City on Saturday.
Manchester City earned a hard-fought three points thanks to a magnificent Kevin De Bruyne free-kick, as the Sky Blues held off late Leicester pressure to move one point clear of Arsenal in the Premier League rankings.
Pep Guardiola was without star striker Erling Haaland for Saturday’s trip to the Midlands, with the in-form forward missing the match due to a foot injury.
- Erling Haaland
- Kyle Walker
- Manuel Akanji
Fellow summer addition Julian Alvarez led the line for the Blues, as De Bruyne scored the only goal of the game in the 49th minute.
https://twitter.com/City_Xtra/status/1586639283993120768?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1586639283993120768%7Ctwgr%5Ed3dc9f69fc728f67489427c8c80a0a22ade3fde3%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.sportbible.com%2Fcity-xtra%2Fmanuel-akanji-manchester-city-injury-concern-20221030
The Belgian’s impressive free-kick flew in off the woodwork after Jack Grealish was brought down outside the box.
Ilkay Gundogan had a brilliant opportunity to kill the game late on, but the German failed to get on the end of De Bruyne’s vicious cross.
Saturday’s clash was the Blues’ last away game before the World Cup, but with four more matches and the tournament in Qatar looming, City and Switzerland will be sweating on the fitness of Manuel Akanji, who was forced off after 71 minutes.
The 27-year-old limped off at the King Power Stadium and was pictured to be in discomfort in his upper leg.
Akanji has had an exceptional start to life in England, with the defender having made his ninth start of the campaign this weekend.
The Swiss international completed a £15 million deadline-day move from Borussia Dortmund, after spending four years at the German club.
The defender is also expected to be a part of Switzerland’s squad for the upcoming World Cup, having featured at both the 2018 World Cup and 2020 European Championships for his country.
Switzerland has been placed in Group G, where they will face Cameroon, Brazil, and Serbia in the Middle East next month.
Both Pep Guardiola and Murat Yakin will be sweating on the fitness of Akanji after Saturday’s injury concern.
The Blues are due to face Sevilla in their final Champions League Group Stage match on Wednesday, before hosting Fulham in the Premier League on Saturday afternoon.
Fixtures against Chelsea and Everton at the Etihad Stadium also await Guardiola’s side before the campaign pauses.
Manchester City is already without defender Kyle Walker due to injury, although center-back John Stones has recently returned to full fitness.
- Erling Haaland
- Kyle Walker
- Manuel Akanji
Leave a Reply