Manchester City have been dealt a significant blow with the news that Antoine Semenyo is set to miss the next eight weeks due to injury. However, the setback has been softened by the fact that Semenyo's problem is not as severe as initially feared, while star striker Erling Haaland is fit to face AEK Athens in the Champions League after sustaining a minor knock in the 3-2 victory over Ipswich at the weekend.
Semenyo's Injury and Impact
Semenyo has two goals and three assists in seven Premier League games so far this campaign, having established himself in the Man City lineup after joining from Bournemouth in January. The Ghanaian international will be out until December with what City boss Enzo Maresca described as a "collateral injury". A collateral injury refers to one of the collateral ligaments in the body, a band of tissue that protects the joints in the knee and the elbow.
Discussing Semenyo's injury during a press conference before the AEK Athens game, Maresca said: "In the first moment, we expected a worse injury. After yesterday's scan, we feel better. It will be eight weeks, so when he is back in December, it will be like a new player. (The injury is) not muscular. To lose Antoine, or any player, is not good."
Haaland's Availability
In terms of Erling, Maresca added: "We said we can use Antoine as a 9 but we have different players to try. We will see. At the moment it is Erling, we don't need to think about another one." The knock frontman Haaland received in the win over Ipswich on Saturday will not prevent the Norwegian from featuring in the Champions League on Tuesday night.
Maresca - who also saw fitness scares over Nico O'Reilly, Matheus Nunes and Mateo Kovacic at the weekend - continued: "[Erling] can be available. We will see. We have a session now. We have some doubts after Saturday's game. He was quite good yesterday, better. The rest are more or less okay."
Upcoming Fixtures
Semenyo's injury is set to see him miss four games in the Champions League, as well as City's fourth round Carabao Cup clash with in-form Brighton next week. The team will now look to cope without the winger as they navigate a busy schedule.
