Man City have lost Abdukodir Khusanov to injury for the international break, and the club have confirmed Marc Guehi will stay at the Etihad Campus after pulling out of the England squad.
It means three of Enzo Maresca’s defenders are now carrying problems from Saturday’s 3-1 defeat at Nottingham Forest, a result that sent City into the break on a third straight Premier League loss.
According to the Manchester Evening News, Abdukodir Khusanov picked up a problem at the City Ground and will not join up with Uzbekistan for their friendlies against Russia and Saudi Arabia. The odd part is that he played the full 90 minutes, so nobody outside the club knows how bad it is yet.
What did City say about Guehi?
Guehi had been named in Thomas Tuchel’s 25-man squad for the Nations League games against Croatia and Spain. He came off at half-time at Forest in what looked like a tactical switch, before Maresca explained after the game that the centre-back had asked to come off with a problem.
As we covered on Sunday, Guehi was booked in for a scan on his hip, and that has now settled it. He has withdrawn from the England squad and Newcastle United defender Dan Burn has been called up in his place.
City put out a statement on their website explaining the decision. “Guehi was named in Thomas Tuchel’s original 25-man group, along with fellow City star Elliot Anderson, for UEFA Nations League meetings with Croatia and Spain,” the club wrote. “Our No.6 will instead remain with the club ahead of the return of domestic football when we face Fulham in the Premier League on Saturday, November 21.”
How many Man City defenders are injured?
The list keeps growing. Josko Gvardiol was the other half of Maresca’s half-time double change at Forest, and the City boss said the Croatian had felt a “small issue” during the week. There’s been no word yet on whether he stays with Croatia.
Nico O’Reilly was left out of the England squad after Maresca said on Friday that he was “not 100 per cent fit” and needed recovery work over the break. Matheus Nunes has had his own injury problems this season too.
Further forward, Antoine Semenyo is still out with the leg injury he picked up in October and should be back in December.
Why it matters for Maresca
City have conceded 17 goals in their last eight games, and the slump has dropped them to third, six points behind leaders Arsenal and below Brighton. Maresca admitted his side need a rest, and he’ll be hoping as many of his defenders as possible are back when the squad returns late next week.
The Fulham game on 21 November is the first test. After that comes the trip to Arsenal, which is where a settled back four would really count.
Khusanov and Guehi injuries: a break City actually needed?
Nobody likes seeing two centre-backs pull out of international duty in one day, but in this case it might be the best thing that could happen. Guehi has been playing through a sore hip, Khusanov is now hurt as well, and both get two weeks at the Etihad Campus with City’s own medical staff instead of travelling.
The worry is the depth. With Gvardiol and O’Reilly also short of full fitness, Maresca needs at least two of these four back and sharp for Fulham. If he gets that, the break could turn out to be the reset this defence was crying out for. If he doesn’t, the run of five different back fours that has hurt City so far is only going to get longer.
