Pep Guardiola confirmed on Friday that Manchester City might have to decide whether to have a second central defender surgery in two weeks.
This latest setback follows Manuel Akanji’s suspension from the Premier League champions for up to 10 weeks following a muscular injury he sustained in the first leg of the team’s Champions League last-16 play-off match against Real Madrid.
Abdukodir Khusanov was able to start against Los Blancos in the second leg at the Santiago Bernabeu because of that issue. The Uzbek international impressed many spectators with his battle against Vinicius Jr. on the right side of City’s defense.
However, the match brought about a new concern as John Stones limped off the field with a muscular injury inside the opening 10 minutes, just moments after Kylian Mbappe had broken free in behind the City defense to give Real Madrid an advantage.
Stones could be facing surgery
Guardiola is clear that many of his players cannot play 50 or more games, and with 11 of his squad being aged 30 or more by September, he suggested some will have to depart.
That’s a fact,” the Catalan remarked. We must meet with the players, agents, physiotherapists, and doctors to make it obvious that some of them cannot continue playing every three or four days, every month, or every two months. Therefore, this is the situation. One more year remains before the World Cup.
Only 16 games have been played this season by Aké, 30, who took Stones’ position against Real. In addition to missing almost two months of action starting in mid-September due to a pelvic issue, the 33-year-old De Bruyne only made 26 appearances last season due to a significant hamstring ailment. The Belgian’s lack of use as a substitute in Madrid was questioned by Guardiola.
