De Bruyne ruled out for two months with knee injury

KEVIN DE BRUYNE could be out for between two to four months after injuring a knee while training with Manchester City.

The extent of the damage is still to be fully assessed but the initial prognosis is that De Bruyne has torn a lateral ligament in his right knee in what was a freak incident.

Further tests on the 27-year-old will take place today but it seems he has a similar injury to the one he sustained in January 2016 against Everton, which ruled him out for nine weeks, missing 12 matches.

Around nine weeks out could be the bestcase scenario if the tear is confirmed. If it is a complete tear, rather than partial, then it could be as long as four months. If there is ligament damage, it will be a severe blow to manager Pep Guardiola, given De Bruyne’s importance to the English champions.

The Belgian international would miss a significant number of fixtures, starting with Sunday’s Premier League match away to Huddersfield Town, and including the opening of City’s Champions League campaign next month.

It appears De Bruyne hurt himself while turning during training, with no player close to him. He limped off and eventually left on crutches.

A ligament tear is likely to mean De Bruyne is sent to Barcelona for treatment by Dr Ramon Cugat, who dealt with his recovery last time and whom Guardiola has described as “the best doctor in the world”.

Cugat operated on Benjamin Mendy when the defender tore his cruciate knee ligament last season and has dealt with a number of City players. The loss of De Bruyne could provide opportunities for 18-year-old Phil Foden, whom Guardiola has said would feature more this season.