Kevin de Bruyne could return from injury as Manchester City bid to inflict Liverpool’s first Premier League defeat of the season and put pressure on them in the title race, City manager Pep Guardiola said today.
The return of De Bruyne would boost City’s hopes of beating Liverpool and reducing their lead at the top to four points. It would also be a flip to their title defence which suffered a serious blow with three defeats in their last five league matches.
The 27-year-old Belgian midfielder, City’s player of the year, has endured an injury-affected campaign, restricting him to just six league appearances. He was out of action from August until late October with a knee injury, then suffered a calf problem in early November that sidelined him for more than a month.
Having returned again in mid-December, he suffered a muscle problem during the defeat at Leicester on Boxing Day. Guardiola, though, is hopeful De Bruyne can feature on Thursday as City look to drag themselves back into the title race.
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