Man City suffer Kevin De Bruyne injury setback amid Arsenal and Liverpool title battle

Manchester City midfielder Kevin De Bruyne has been left out of the Belgium squad for their upcoming double-header.

The Red Devils are due to face the Republic of Ireland and England in back-to-back international friendlies, with head coach Dominic Tedesco opting to leave out De Bruyne due to an ongoing injury issue. The 32-year-old was recently withdrawn at Anfield, much to his displeasure, during City's 1-1 draw with Liverpool.

The former Wolfsburg man has missed large parts of the season for Pep Guardiola's side due to ongoing hamstring issues, but in recent weeks he has returned to reignite the Blues' hopes of a third-consecutive Premier League title.

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Speaking after announcing his squad, Tedesco confirmed that De Bruyne would miss out on his side's upgoing games, and with the European Championships in Germany just around the corner, he said it was not worth risking the midfielder.

“He’s been playing with a minor groin issue during the last games," began the 38-year-old. "Yesterday I spoke to the doctor and Kevin and we decided that the risk is too big. It's better to give him time to recover well at City and then have him ready for the Euros.“

City still face a tough run-in with just ten games left to go in the Premier League, with Arsenal and Liverpool continuing to mount their own respective challenges. Guardiola's side have Newcastle United next up in their FA Cup quarter-final clash this weekend, before facing Arsenal in another vital top-flight clash shortly after the completion of the upcoming international break.