KEVIN DE BRUYNE GIVES INJURY UPDATE AHEAD OF MAN CITY TITLE DECIDER

Kevin De Bruyne expects to be ‘alright’ for Manchester City’s Premier League title decider against West Ham despite hobbling off during the crucial victory over Tottenham.

De Bruyne was forced off midway through the second half of City’s 2-0 win at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium but has played down concerns he will miss Sunday’s decider at the Etihad.

Manchester City have one hand on the Premier League trophy after beating Spurs to move two points clear of Arsenal ahead of the final day of the season.

The result in north London – sealed by Erling Haaland’s second-half brace – means Man City will lift the Premier League for the fourth season in a row if they beat West Ham at the weekend.

An unexpected slip-up would allow Arsenal to snatch a first Premier League title since 2004, providing they take care of their own job and beat Everton on the final day.

But it is hard to see West Ham taking points off Manchester City, especially as De Bruyne expects to be fit enough to feature for the defending champions.

‘I think I’m alright,’ he told Sky Sports when asked about the injury he sustained against Tottenham.

‘It’s a bit sore, in that moment it felt a little bit like a knife going down my leg. But it’s an impact injury so it’s not bad, not bad. We will be alright.’

Man City made an uncharacteristically subdued start to their clash against Spurs but Haaland’s 51st-minute tap-in broke the deadlock.

Tottenham then missed a string of chances – the best falling to captain Son Heung-min, who raced through on goal before being denied by City back-up goalkeeper Stefan Ortega – before Haaland scored an injury-time penalty to put the game to bed.

‘We were happy obviously because it gets us in the place we want to be on the final day,’ De Bruyne said. ‘But there was no extra celebrations, we know it’s not done yet.

‘I know everyone is saying it should be easy but it’s never easy and there’s always the pressure of being in that situation.’

Pep Guardiola slumped to the floor as he prepared for Man City’s net to bulge as Son raced through on goal but was delighted to see Ederson’s injury replacement Ortega produce a huge save.

Asked how he felt as Son ran through, De Bruyne added: ‘I was the same! These moments happen in games and obviously you’re thinking the worse.

‘But Stefan did a great save for us. Luckily for us it didn’t go in.’

If Manchester City beat West Ham, Arsenal will finish as Premier League runners-up for the second year in a row and fail to win the title despite potentially amassing 89 points this season.

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2024-05-15T14:17:31Z dg43tfdfdgfd