Manchester City midfielder Kevin de Bruyne “will be out for a while” after suffering a hamstring injury against Burnley, says manager Pep Guardiola.
Subscribe to Switch TV for more exciting content
The playmaker De Bruyne was forced off the pitch after 23 minutes in the opening game of the season on Friday, despite the Treble-winners City winning comfortably 3-0.
Read Also: EPL returns: Champions Manchester City at Burnley, Chelsea vs Liverpool
The Belgium international lasted 36 minutes of the Champions League final win over Inter Milan in June.
“He was injured again unfortunately,” Guardiola told BBC Match of the Day. “It is the same place and position as the Champions League [final] and he will be out for a while.”
De Bruyne scored 10 goals and provided 31 assists as City claimed the Champions League, Premier League and FA Cup last season.
The midfielder said earlier this month he had been playing through the pain with a hamstring injury for the final two months of the campaign.
However, the 32-year-old played for half an hour in last weekend’s Community Shield and missed a penalty in the shootout as Arsenal lifted the trophy.
Is KDB Replaceable at Man City??
De Bruyne broke down again at Burnley and was replaced by summer signing Mateo Kovacic, who made his City debut.
“He recovered well [after going off injured in the Champions League final] but now we’ve lost him again,” Guardiola told Sky Sports. “It’s time to reflect, to talk to the doctors about what happened with him. “He has to relax and recover and come back. He was feeling really good and playing really good in the first minutes, but unfortunately now he’s injured again.”
When asked whether he should have avoided taking a chance on starting De Bruyne at Turf Moor, Guardiola said: “Maybe. But what happened in 15 minutes can happen after 60, 65 or 70 minutes when the fatigue comes.”
Burnley boss Vincent Kompany added: “I hope he [De Bruyne] is going to be fine. What a player he is.”
There was some unrest at Turf Moor, with City teenager Rico Lewis hit by an object that was thrown from the stands in the first half.
Another spectator also tried to run onto the pitch during the second half but was stopped by security.
“We are aware of an incident that happened where a missile was thrown at Manchester City player Rico Lewis,” a Burnley statement read. “This is unacceptable. The person responsible has been identified and removed from the ground by the police. “Any individual found guilty of throwing missiles within the stadium will receive a banning order.”
