Pep’s pains growing with more injuries
ALL Pep Guardiola wants from an international break is for his players to return in full health and, preferably, in form.
In the last few breaks, however, luck has deserted City, with Ferran Torres, Phil Foden and Kevin de Bruyne all missing games after representing their countries.
That list looks set to rise after the November break, with the news that three England players will miss their second fixtures for various reasons.
Cole Palmer has picked up a hamstring injury - although he assured fans it’s not serious - while Jack Grealish won’t travel to San Marino for the final World Cup qualifier tonight as he has injury problems of his own, despite coming off the bench against Albania. Raheem Sterling will miss the trip for personal reasons.
Even if only minor problems, Grealish and Palmer’s issues are a reminder that City’s squad have been pushed to their limits in recent weeks as Guardiola attempted to climb back into Premier League and Champions League contention.
It worked, but at what cost?
The concerns began when Bernardo Silva, fresh from a Man of the Match performance against United, didn’t train with the Portugal squad and missed their draw at Ireland.
“He has muscle complaints,” said Portugal boss Fernando Santos.
“He arrived tired, complaining, he has many games on him, and couldn’t go to training, but he’s recovering well and we hope and we believe he’ll be able to play here with Serbia.
“He won’t even travel with us, it doesn’t make sense because we don’t consider him to be at 100 percent. It wouldn’t be the best conditions for the treatment he’s undergoing, he’ll stay here so that he can start to join the group.”
As well as not taking Bernardo to Dublin, Santos left Ruben Dias and Joao Cancelo on the bench in the 0-0 draw that took their qualifying campaign down to the final round of matches. That could simply have been rotation in order to ensure they entered last night’s decider with Serbia with the best, freshest players available, or it could reflect the tiredness seen in Bernardo.
Similarly, Riyad Mahrez started Algeria’s win over Djibouti on the bench, and there were more complaints from De Bruyne, who played most of Belgium’s win over Estonia where he grabbed an assist.
“It’s a bit harder than usual this year,” he said before the Estonia game, confirming he is still playing through the pain barrier for City.
“It’s not too bad, I think, but it has been a bit difficult physically and mentally. I came back with a lot of pain after the holidays, and then at the start of the season, I had my face against the wall.
“I’ve had some serious pain, but it’s starting to get better. I just needed more time than expected.”
The problem is, City haven’t had the time especially after a stuttering start and defeat in the Champions
League to PSG. De
Bruyne, Bernardo, Cancelo and Dias have been needed to play.
Guardiola’s usual rotation has been limited by the requirement to get back on track.
Grealish has been allowed to learn about City’s tactics through regular gametime, but that now appears to be catching up on him.
With players slowly returning, the Blues boss was finally getting something of a fully-fit squad before the break, barring Torres’ long-term absence.
However, now it looks like the players who have helped him get to that point by shouldering more responsibility than usual might be starting to feel the effects of such an intense start to the season. It can’t be a coincidence that multiple players are starting to pick up fatigue, tiredness and muscle-based niggles.
City will have to manage those players carefully when they return to the City Football Academy and ensure these concerning minor injuries don’t turn into anything more serious. They’ve survived one injury crisis this season, but might not be as fortunate with another.
I’ve has some serious pain but it’s starting to get better. I just needed more time than expected
Kevin de Bruyne