BEVERLY HILLS, May 30, (THEWILL) – During Saturday’s UEFA Champions League final, Manchester City’s midfielder Kevin De Bruyne had to be substituted at the stroke of the hour mark and went straight down the tunnel to immediately attend to a facial injury.
On Sunday, it was learnt that the Belgian playmaker suffered a fractured eye socket and nose during his side’s 1-0 defeat to Chelsea. The 29-year-old was caught by Chelsea’s Germany defender Antonio Rudiger in a clash of heads. When Kyle Walker stood by the player as he received treatment from City’s medical team, it seemed a serious knock.
And it has proven to be so as the fracture could keep De Bruyne out of next month’s rescheduled Euro 2020 fixtures. The player must have had that in mind as he left the pitch in tears before being taken to hospital when the swelling around his face worsened.
De Bruyne himself confirmed the severity of his injury on Sunday via a Twitter message: “My diagnosis is Acute nose bone fracture and left orbital fracture. I feel okay now. Still disappointed about yesterday obviously but we will be back.”
His participation in the European Championship, which is presently less than a fortnight away, as part of the Belgium squad could be in doubt for now. Belgium’s first game of the tournament is against Russia on Saturday, June 12 and team coach Roberto Martinez has until Tuesday 1 June to decide the members of his squad.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
