Man City superstar Ruben Dias is out of action for longer than initially expected after a “sinister” hamstring injury.
That is the view of injury expert Ben Dinnery, who runs the Premier Injuries site and has a background in medicine and data analysis.
Dias, the Premier League’s Player of the Season in 2020-21, suffered a thigh injury in the 2-0 FA Cup win over Peterborough last Tuesday (1 March).
The Portuguese did not feature in last Sunday’s (6 March) Manchester derby or last night’s (9 March) Champions League clash against Sporting Lisbon.
As quoted by The Independent on Monday (7 March), Pep Guardiola revealed the 24-year-old is set to spend “four to six weeks” on the sidelines.
Dinnery explained that that timeframe is longer than first feared for what initially appeared to be a relatively innocuous setback.
“There was no indication prior to those comments that Dias had suffered anything significant,” he told Football Insider‘s Adam Williams.
“It was initially played down by Pep. He referenced it as a little bit of discomfort, minor pain. He took him off as a precaution.
“At the time, that may have been the case. It may have evolved and imaging has revealed something more sinister. Now, he’s out longer than expected.
“Four to six weeks is a long time and that will be a concern but you have to look at the strength in depth of that City squad.
“You’ve got an England international in John Stone alongside Aymeric Laporte at centre-back.
“Dias is a massive, massive player but they are more than well-stocked to cope.”
Dias has registered two goals and four assists in 34 appearances across all competitions this term.
City are currently top of the Premier League and last night’s draw against Sporting secured passage to the Champions League quarter-finals.
Leave a Reply