The Sky Blues will have to make do without their playmaker in chief for a while as he could not return until after the international break.
Kevin De Bruyne has been ruled of Saturday’s Premier League match between Manchester City and Arsenal.
De Bruyne sustained an ankle injury while on international duty at this summer’s European Championships.
Shortly after reporting back to Man City for pre-season, the Belgian midfielder flew to Barcelona for a scan of his ankle by expert Spanish orthopedic surgeon Ramon Cugat, according to The Times.
He was excluded from Pep Guardiola’s starting XI for the 2021-22 campaign opener against Tottenham and didn’t even make it into the squad to face Norwich City on matchday 2.
In what comes as a major blow for Man City, De Bruyne will also play no part in the upcoming crunch clash at the Etihad.
“Kevin is not available,” said Belgium boss Roberto Martinez, as journalist Kristof Terreur reports.
“As you know he had some minutes against Tottenham. But after that game he still felt some pain [in the ankle]. He’s taking a different route now.
“He’s not gonna be playing this weekend. The idea is to see how his injury progresses. It’s only right that we work together for the well-being of the player.
“Kevin is working really hard behind the scenes to get fully fit and to be ready for a demanding season. At the moment he’s not 100 percent fit.”
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