No wonder: De Bruyne could be fit for the match against Arsenal

With the crucial Premier League clash with Manchester City approaching, many fans can’t help but feel a sense of déjà vu when it comes to Kevin De Bruyne’s health.

It is not the first time City have suggested that one of their key players will be out only to miraculously recover just before the Arsenal game.

De Bruyne, who suffered a groin injury during Wednesday’s Champions League clash with Inter Milan, was expected to miss the upcoming match. Arsenal fans have rightly noted that City have made similar claims about De Bruyne’s fitness in the past, but he ultimately played a key role against them.

As expected, City manager Pep Guardiola hinted that the Belgian midfielder could still feature against Arsenal, stating: “He feels a bit better today but we haven’t had training yet and we’ll see. He could be involved.”

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta remains pragmatic about De Bruyne’s potential involvement. Speaking about the possibility of facing City without their playmaker, Arteta said: “No, because they have an option if he doesn’t play Ilkay Gundogan, Bernardo Silva, Phil Foden, Mateo Kovacic.”

Arteta has hailed the wealth of options City have at their disposal, pointing out that “they are all world-class players” and emphasising that teams like City “don’t rely on one person”.

The timing of the injury reports is particularly frustrating for Arsenal given the fact that their captain and midfield talisman Martin Odegaard is officially out of action due to ankle ligament damage he suffered while playing for Norway in the meaningless Nations League.

Guardiola treated Odegaard’s absence with respect, saying: “I feel very sorry for him. I always like to play against the strongest team. Of course he is an important player, but Arsenal are getting better year by year.”

But the contrast between City’s ‘maybe’ over De Bruyne and Arsenal’s confirmed failures is stark and adds to the sense of unease among Arsenal fans.

Another sticking point in the build-up to Sunday’s game is the extra day of rest City have had compared to Arsenal. While City were at home on Wednesday, Arsenal face a difficult trip to Italy in the Europa League to play Atalanta on Thursday night.

Addressing the discrepancy in schedule, Arteta admitted: “We wanted the same thing as them but we’re not getting it, so we have to adapt.” Despite the frustration, Arteta remains focused on preparing his squad for the task ahead, emphasising the need to “go there and win the game.”

Guardiola, for his part, admitted that City “have an advantage” but then complained about the last six years, during which they also had a tough schedule (like all top teams).

For Arsenal, the match against City comes after a difficult week and will be their third away game in a row, following difficult encounters with Tottenham and Atalanta.

Arsenal concerns over City’s injury and squad depth

Apart from Odegaard, Arsenal have a long injury list which includes Mikel Merino, Kieran Tierney, Takehiro Tomiyasu and possibly Oleksandr Zinchenko.

Arteta openly admitted that the schedule was difficult from a coaching perspective, noting: “We had been preparing for this since pre-season. Obviously we knew the schedule and we knew it was very rare to play in these conditions, having three big away games in six days.”

Although City also have injury concerns, with Nathan Ake and Oscar Bobb unable to play, the depth of Guardiola’s squad means he is well-equipped to deal with such issues.

Meanwhile, Arsenal are showing they have finally managed to build a squad capable of doing the same.