Manchester City trio withdraw from international duties due to injury problems

Pep Guardiola has seen a trio of first-team squad members withdraw from respective international call-ups this week due to injury problems sustained in recent days.

The latest updates concerning the fitness of the Manchester City squad follows a dramatic afternoon’s work in London, after the Premier League champions were held in an enthralling 4-4 draw with Mauricio Pochettino’s Chelsea.

It also takes Manchester City’s list of players ruled out through injury up to a total of six, with the latest round of problems adding to John Stones’ hamstring issue and Kevin De Bruyne’s recovery from surgery on a muscular problem sustained in August.

Sergio Gomez is also sidelined after sustaining a hamstring problem during a recent training session, while the Spanish full-back was spotted on crutches prior to Manchester City’s 6-1 Premier League win over Bournemouth.

As last season’s Treble winners break for international duties across the next fortnight, three fresh Manchester City injury problems have been confirmed by respective nations forcing various withdrawals from their initial call-ups.

It was first confirmed on Sunday evening by the Netherlands that centre-back Nathan Ake would not be joining up with the squad due to an injury that also kept him away from the Manchester City squad that drew 4-4 with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.

Croatia then followed up with selection news of their own on Monday evening, after they confirmed that Manchester City’s summer recruit Mateo Kovacic would not feature due to a muscular injury picked up in Sunday evening’s clash in London.

A third withdrawal from international action would then follow, with Ederson – who is now Brazil’s number one choice between the sticks – pulling out of action with an injury to his left-foot during his outing at Stamford Bridge.

Manchester City return to club action after the break with a challenging schedule that sees them take on Liverpool and Tottenham in back-to-back Premier League home matches, with a clash against RB Leipzig at the Etihad sandwiched between the two.

City remain top of the Premier League table by a single point after their draw against Chelsea, while their December and January schedule also welcomes the introduction of FIFA Club World Cup and Emirates FA Cup competition.