There now have to be doubts surrounding a Manchester City defender’s future as injury strikes once again | OneFootball

Manchester City did what they had to yesterday as they beat Plymouth Argyle 3-1 to progress to the quarter-final stage of the FA Cup. There were plenty of positives for Pep Guardiola to take from yesterday’s match. The performances of Vitor Reis and Nico O’Reilly are just two examples of this. But there was a fresh injury concern to emerge from yesterday’s match for Pep Guardiola’s side. That was the injury suffered by Nathan Ake just before halftime. He was replaced by Ruben Dias at the interval.

Ake’s injury is yet another injury blow for Manchester City’s centre-backs. He is likely to join Manuel Akanji and John Stones on the sidelines for an extended period. It is also yet another injury blow for Nathan Ake this season. He has battled niggling injuries all season long. You do now feel that his latest injury blow has now cast doubt over his future at the club. Ake, when fit, is one of Manchester City’s most dependable defenders. But like John Stones, he now struggles to stay fit for a prolonged period of time. You do now get the sense that the current injury situation consistently faced by Stones and Ake isn’t sustainable for next season and beyond. What the means for the summer remains to be seen.

Speaking after his team’s win yesterday Pep Guardiola believes Nathan Ake will now be out for an extended period. But he is grateful to have Vitor Reis and Abdukodir Khusanov in his squad. Guardiola told the media: “Now again we have central defenders out. I think we are going to miss Nathan. I’m so grateful to the club for bringing Vitor and Khusanov to the club otherwise we would not have any chance to qualify for the Champions League next season or fight for the FA Cup; we would have just Ruben. It’s a miracle they are here to help us because the problems we have, have happened all season.”

Manchester City will now have to soldier on without John Stones, Nathan Ake and Manuel Akanji. Pep Guardiola does have Vitor Reis and Abdukodir Khusanov to support Ruben Dias at centre-back. But going forward you do feel that Ake’s future at Manchester City may be in doubt. Like John Stones, Manchester City can’t afford to carry too many injury prone players into next season. If Ake is sidelined for an extended period it will be interesting to see what it means for his future at Manchester City.