Pep Guardiola has shared a significant injury update concerning Manchester City midfielder Kevin De Bruyne.
The Belgian has been out of action since August having undergone hamstring surgery.
Not long ago, the 32-year-old said that he is aiming to get back to full fitness at some point in January.
Now though, the City boss has shared a fresh update on where the player is in terms of his recovery.
Guardiola shares positive De Bruyne injury update
Speaking in his latest press conference ahead of Sunday’s Premier League clash against Luton Town, Guardiola had this to say about De Bruyne’s current fitness situation.
He said: “Started to run on the pitch but hasn’t trained once with us. Maybe [the FIFA Club World Cup] will be a little bit early, but I don’t know. Kevin will be back when he is, we don’t rush him and when he’s back we will welcome him with open arms.”
Looking back over the previous Premier League season, De Bruyne ended the campaign with more shot-creating actions (176) and goal-creating actions (31) than any other player at the club, highlighting how much of a pivotal creative figure he is for the team.
In addition to that, the midfielder won more tackles in the attacking third of the pitch (13) than any other City player, showing how useful he is off the ball as well as how dangerous he can be on it.
Taking all of that into account, it’s clear that getting De Bruyne back on the pitch would be a massive boost for City and increase their chances of winning some trophies this season, especially if he’s able to replicate the same sort of form he showed in the league last season.
However, as Guardiola mentioned, given the seriousness of his injury, City will have to be very cautious in terms of the game time he gets when he gets back to fitness.
