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Manchester City midfielder Kevin De Bruyne is expected to miss about three months of the current football season due to a knee injury picked up in training during the week. There is no doubting the fact that De Bruyne is a fantastic football player and he has not looked back since he arrived at the Etihad. Last season, he was voted City's Player of the Season and he narrowly lost the Premier League Player of the Season award to Liverpool's Mohamed Salah.
Bruyne’s impact in the team last season was so important that his goals and assists helped the Cityzens cruise through the Premier League on the way to the league title. The combative midfielder scored 12 times and provided 21 assists in 52 appearances for City last term. That means he was directly involved in 33 of Manchester City goals in all competitions. That is indeed truly remarkable. "He will be a big miss," said City boss Pep Guardiola, who advised the player to "take the holiday he didn't get this summer,"
The rest of the Premier League should not be in a celebratory mood yet as City still possess a whole lot of talent to hit the ground running while the Belgian is injured. The likes of David Silva, Bernando Silva and Ilkay Gundogan are world-class players who can fill in the blanks. However, everyone associated with the club should still be worried about his injury because it will definitely affect the team especially for such a player who had such an impact in the run-up to their title triumph last season.
There are definitely going to be games this season when the Belgian will be sorely missed. His vision, technique, his improved physique as well as his ability to beat his marker are qualities that make him stand out from the rest of the other midfielders in the squad.
Pep Guardiola once described him as a "complete" midfielder. Time will tell how the club will cope with their talisman's absence. If Manchester City slip up as a result, other rival clubs should be ready to pounce to claim the title from the grips of the defending champions.
