Manchester City dealt key blow as star set for spell on the sidelines

Manchester City star Phil Foden has been forced to pull out of the Three Lions’ Euro 2024 qualifier against Ukraine.

The winger suffered an acute appendicitis which has ruled him out of the Wembley game having already gone under the knife.

The hope was the Three Lions star, who scored for his country at Qatar 2022, would feature on Sunday having trained in the build-up but felt unwell and has had to miss the qualifier.

But the Man City ace won’t be available for the fixture, handing Gareth Southgate another blow with Luke Shaw also unavailable following his red card in the 2-1 win over Italy.

Foden’s absence will also be worrying news for Pep Guardiola and Man City’s Premier League title run in, as well as their Champions League hopes, with him likely to miss the quarter-finals.

How long does it take to recover from appendicitis?

The NHS advises not to return to ‘strenuous activities’ until four to six weeks following surgery.

What games could Phil Foden miss?

It is now likely that Foden will miss the entirety of April and the beginning of May following surgery.

Manchester City return to action on April 1 with a crunch clash against Liverpool at the Etihad Stadium. This is followed by a trip to Southampton.

A home game against Leicester is sandwiched in between both legs of Man City’s UEFA Champions League quarter-final against Bayern Munich.

Following the second leg at the Allianz Arena, Man City face Sheffield United in the FA Cup semi-finals. They round off April against Premier League title rivals Arsenal and then visit Fulham.

Man City open May with gammes at home to West Ham at Leeds, at which point Foden should be back in training.