Author: Soorya G
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has said that his team has serious problems with the injury situation at the club. The Spanish coach became concerned after the already long list of injured stars increased during the club’s first match as European champions. Portuguese midfielder Bernardo Silva was the latest to pick up an injury and left the field against Red Star Belgrade in the UEFA Champions League group stage. Guardiola gave the media an update on Silva’s condition, saying that he would be sidelined for at least the next few weeks.
The blow comes at a time when there isn’t much experience on City’s bench, with players like Kevin de Bruyne, Jack Grealish and Mateo Kovacic all out. Guardiola therefore went into the European game with a limited bench.
“We have problems, but I’m not going to say ‘oh, we have a lot of injuries’. Things are as they are. With the players we have, we’re going to make an effort. As long as we have that mentality, that’s a good thing. We have five very important players out injured and it would be difficult to keep that up for long.” said Guardiola.
The Cityzens sold players like Cole Palmer and Riyad Mahrez over the summer, but they still have the depth to remain unaffected at the moment. The timescale of Grealish and Kovacic’s injuries is quite short, and the team can return to full strength in a reasonable period, said the robust coach.
“With the salaries and transfer budgets, we can’t have 55 players. It would be chaos for the clubs. They would go bankrupt. Unfortunately, that’s a long time for Kevin. John didn’t play, it’s a bit long. Maybe Kova is coming back. Jack might do it in a week or 10 days, but then he needs his condition.” Guardiola added.