Manchester City’s key midfielder Kevin De Bruyne (32) suffered a recurrence of injury before the opening of the new season, putting the team on an emergency.
Round 1 of the 2023-2024 English Premier League (EPL) held at Turf Moor in Burnley on the night of the 11th (local time). De Bruyne started as a defensive midfielder in a 4-2-3-1 formation against Burnley that day, but in the 21st minute of the first half, he sat down on the ground feeling pain in his leg (hamstring), and was replaced by Mateo Kovacic two minutes later.
In an interview after the match, manager Pep Guardiola said, “Unfortunately, De Bruyne got hurt again. He said it was the same problem as last season. So that’s the problem. He felt really good and played well in his first few minutes.”
He continued, “It is the same place and location as in the Champions League final last season. He will be out for a while,” he said.
When asked if he should have avoided starting De Bruyne in this Turf Moor away trip, Guardiola said “maybe” and said, “But what happens in 15 minutes can happen in 60, 65 or 70 minutes when fatigue sets in. Yes,” he replied.안전놀이터
Burnley manager Vincent Kompany said: “I hope De Bruyne is fine. He is a really great player.”
De Bruyne played only 36 minutes due to injury in the Champions League final against Inter Milan in June. He said earlier this month that he played through pain for two months last season with a hamstring injury.
He also played just 30 minutes in the recent Community Shield against Arsenal, missing in a penalty shoot-out that forced Manchester City to give Arsenal the title.
De Bruyne contributed to Manchester City’s treble last season with 10 goals and 31 assists.
Manchester City faced Burnley on the day and won 3-0 with two goals from last season’s top scorer Elling Hollan (4 minutes in the first half, 36 minutes in the first half) and an additional goal by Rodri (30 minutes in the second half), and started off smoothly toward their fourth consecutive league victory.