Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola expects Leroy Sane to be sidelined for up to seven months with an anterior cruciate ligament injury. The German had to have surgery on his right knee after being injured against Liverpool in the Community Shield last weekend.
Speaking at his pre-match press conference, ahead of the match against West Ham tomorrow, the City boss said that it will be well into the New Year before the 23-year-old is back playing in the first team:
“Normally, these kind of injuries, six to seven months. Hopefully, in February or March, he can come back with us.”
Supporters on Twitter are devastated by the latest injury news:
Nooooooooo! We need him so much! @BraathuEngen
— JONAS (@Jonas20295971) August 9, 2019
Ach that is rotten. Imagine a fresh Sané arriving near the end of the season though? ??????
— HalfManHalfDuvet (@bruceb_uk) August 9, 2019
Leroy to wrap up the title for us im calling it
— salim (@msalims189) August 9, 2019
— Chloe? (@Chloee__mcfcx) August 9, 2019
Get well soon Leroy!!??
— Sohail (@__s2s9__) August 9, 2019
Feel Bad for Sane
— Luke St Leger (@luke_mancity) August 9, 2019
Man why, why? Sane hope u will be back before Xmas. Will pray for you.
— Lengai Described (@am_lengai) August 9, 2019
Jeeeezuz!! Get well soon @LeroySane19, come back stronger. ♥️
— Cityzen Rodri CanSelf ⭕ (@LivingstonSelf) August 9, 2019
The injury to Sane will be a big blow for City, but Guardiola certainly has enough options at his disposal in order to mitigate the loss. Raheem Sterling may play more regularly from the left-wing this season, with Bernardo Silva or Riyad Mahrez taking up the slot on the opposing flank.
Ahead of the match against the Hammers, City will welcome back Aymeric Laporte to the squad who didn’t play against Liverpool due to a knock, but Benjamin Mendy won’t feature as he continues to have issues with his knee.
