Manchester City have suffered an immediate double injury scare this break as two players have withdrawn from international duty, according to a new report. The Blues head into this two-week interval in domestic action in a very poor run of form, as the 2-1 defeat to Brighton on Saturday means it is four defeats in a row in all competitions for Pep Guardiola’s side.
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Guardiola will be keen for his side to end this run of form against Tottenham Hotspur, whom they face in their next game after this break. But the injury problems the Blues have faced could now open the door for them to conduct some transfer business when January arrives.
Rodri’s absence in City’s midfield has been so key and could be down to why they have struggled in recent weeks. Therefore, Guardiola may be looking to address this in the New Year and has his eyes on a European midfielder. It has been claimed that Man City are battling to sign Hakan Calhanoglu from Inter Milan, with the midfielder open to a new challenge having shifted into a deeper role later in his career, although Bayern Munich are also interested in his services.
As well as looking at Calhanoglu, City are also plotting to sign Federico Valverde from Real Madrid, as they see him as the perfect replacement for Rodri. However, this may be an impossible deal to complete, as Valverde has a release clause of 1 billion euros (£830 million), and it will be down to Madrid if they want to sell the midfielder.
That will be one that the Blues will have to keep their eye on, but for now they have suffered two more injury blows that they will hope are not too serious.
Double injury blow for Man City as duo pulled from internationals
According to CityXtra, Matheus Nunes and Manuel Akanji have both pulled out of the upcoming international games for their respective countries due to injuries. Nunes has started the last five games for the Blues, while Akanji didn’t appear last time out against Brighton but did play in the games against Bournemouth and Sporting CP.
Nunes has been at City since September 2023, but since joining from Wolves he has struggled for regular minutes; however, this has been one of his best runs in the team due to injuries to other players. Meanwhile, Akanji has been an important player for Guardiola since his arrival, starting all 14 games he has played in all competitions this season.
Nunes and Akanji, who earn a combined £16 million a year at the Etihad, are set to remain in Manchester for the next two weeks after pulling out of international duty. Nunes has withdrawn from representing Portugal as he was deemed “not medically fit” by doctors, and Akanji has also withdrawn after he missed the Brighton game due to “lack of fitness” and is not deemed ready for international football.
After defeat to the Seagulls, Guardiola confirmed Akanji’s situation: “Manu said [on Friday], ‘I felt so bad in the training session and I could not move properly’, and against that team [Brighton], I prefer fresh people.”
