Manchester City midfielder Kevin De Bruyne is likely to be sidelined for about six weeks after damaging his knee and ankle in the Capital One Cup semi-final win over Everton, according to the Belgian's agent.
The Belgian international scored a vital – albeit controversial – goal and set up another after coming off the bench in Wednesday’s 3-1 second-leg success at the Etihad Stadium, before being carried of towards the end of the game following an awkward fall.
The 24-year-old appeared to get his studs caught in the turf and then landed on his knee as City closed in on their 4-3 aggregate triumph.
Initial medical reports suggest the problem is not related to the cruciate ligament, but the player's representative Patrick De Koster told Sky Sports News that De Bruyne would likely be out of action for around six weeks.
“Kevin is sad. His dream is to always be playing football. He will miss games like the League Cup final and in the Champions League, which are important,” De Koster said.
“But he knows they (City) are a good team, that the other players will do what they have to do, and maybe win the game for him, and also that (injuries) is what happens in football.
“He is sad, of course, but he told me, ‘this (happens) in a match, (is something) which can arrive in football, and the only thing I can do is to work hard and to come back’.”
The full extent of the injury is yet to be determined, but De Koster feels the midfielder will not be able to return to action until the end of February at the earliest.
“(It is) the tear in the ankle and also the lateral (knee) ligaments are such that I think for sure he will need six weeks of rehabilitation, but they are still going to do some more medical (tests) today and at the end of the day, so maybe tomorrow morning we will have the final news about the time he will need to be 100 per cent again,” De Koster said.