De Bruyne on bench for Man City at Real Madrid after vomiting in locker room
Manchester City’s Kevin De Bruyne, centre, celebrates with teammates after scoring his side’s first goal during the English Premier League soccer match between Crystal Palace and Manchester City at Selhurst Park stadium in London, Saturday, April 6, 2024.(AP Photo/Frank Augstein)
MADRID (AP) — Manchester City playmaker Kevin de Bruyne was ill and was not included in Pep Guardiola’s starting lineup against Real Madrid in the first leg of their Champions League quarterfinal on Tuesday.
Guardiola told TNT that De Bruyne started to vomit in the locker room after the team arrived for the match at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium.
The Belgium international did warm up with his teammates before the match and started on the bench for the defending champions.
De Bruyne was replaced in the lineup by former Madrid player Mateo Kovacic.
De Bruyne scored twice in City’s 4-2 win over Crystal Palace in the Premier League on Saturday and provided an assist on Erling Halaand’s goal.
De Bruyne’s double took him to 100 goals for the club since joining from Wolfsburg in 2015.
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