Manchester City have confirmed that Leroy Sane will miss Wednesday’s Champions League clash with Real Madrid because he ‘isn’t yet match fit’. The 24-year-old suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury in City’s Community Shield win over Liverpool (August 4, 2019) and only returned to training last month.
City are managing his fitness and aren’t going to rush him back into action. Sane has played just 13 minutes of football all season so he may need non-competitive games before he’s ready to feature under Pep Guardiola again.
The Sky Blues aren’t short of options in his stead. Raheem Sterling, Riyad Mahrez, Gabriel Jesus and Bernardo Silva are all in the travelling squad ahead of Wednesday’s meeting at the Santiago Bernabeu, so Guardiola is spoilt for choice.
Real are favourites to come out on top in the first leg of their last-16 clash, but City can take confidence from their recent upturn in form – four wins from their last six in all competitions. They booked their place in the Champions League knockouts after topping Group C with 14 points from six games.
Whether they can avoid defeat in Madrid on Wednesday remains to be seen, however.