Man City have confirmed that Kevin De Bruyne has suffered a groin injury and will not be available for the Champions League clash against Dinamo Zagreb on Tuesday night.
De Bruyne picked up the injury in City's 3-1 victory over Everton on Sunday and had to be substituted on the 80th minute after the creative-midfielder had earlier continued his streak of assisting a goal in every Premier League game he has started this season.
City have not yet been able to confirm how long the 28-year-old will remain on the sidelines for as it depends on how the Belgian's body responds to the treatment.
The news will come as a massive blow to City and De Bruyne especially, who has played like a man making up for lost time in his sublime start to the campaign.
De Bruyne missed out on much of last season's domestic treble success as he was plagued by injuries after suffering ligament damage and then struggling to fully regain fitness afterwards.
He has been City's best player so far this season, with two goals and nine assists in just eight games, and losing him for any amount of time won't be ideal for Pep Guardiola.
The Belgian will definitely be missing for the first Champions League match at the Etihad this season as City take on Croatian champions Zagreb but it remains to be seen how much more action he will miss.
Man City's statement on the matter read:
"Kevin De Bruyne suffered a groin injury in the win over Everton and will miss tonight’s game against Dinamo Zagreb.
"The extent of his layoff depends on how well he responds to the rehabilitation programme overseen by the Club’s medical staff.
"The Belgian has been superb for City so far this season, registering a remarkable nine assists in nine games.
"Everyone at City wishes Kevin a speedy recovery and we all look forward to seeing back in blue soon."
