MANCHESTER, England — English Premier League (EPL) club Manchester City suffered a major blow ahead of Saturday’s FA Cup semi-final against city rival Manchester United after striker Carlos Tevez was sidelined.
The Argentina international suffered a hamstring strain early in the first half of Monday night’s disappointing 3-0 defeat to Liverpool at Anfield. City hoped his early withdrawal from the EPL contest could allow Tevez enough time to recover for the weekend clash against its archrival at Wembley Stadium.
However, despite all of the club’s efforts to have him available for manager Roberto Mancini, he will now miss the showpiece event and up to half of the remaining league games.
Tevez has again been a key player for City this term, culminating in his nomination for the Professional Football Association’s Player of the Year, and his spell on the sidelines will hinder the club’s prospects of a top-four finish.
“I think he will recover in three or four weeks,” Mancini said after confirming the striker was unavailable for Saturday’s semi-final. “It is a big problem but we can’t take any risks. After this game we have another six games and we hope to have Carlos maybe for the last two or three games, or the final if we make it.”
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