Nathan Ake confirms injury that could rule him out of Man City vs Arsenal & FA Cup semi-final

Nathan Ake has confirmed he picked up a hamstring injury in Manchester City’s Champions League draw with Bayern Munich, but has given an optimistic outlook on the issue.

The defender went down in obvious discomfort midway through the quarter-final second leg on Wednesday night and had to be immediately replaced by Aymeric Laporte. Ake was seen holding the back of leg and icing it on the bench after coming off, and the Dutchman has since confirmed it is indeed a hamstring injury.

“I’ve had it before and it feels a little bit less to be honest, but you never know with these things, so we will do the ultrasounds and stuff tomorrow and then hopefully it’s not too bad,” Ake told Sky Sports’ Ben Ransom after the match in the Allianz Arena.

The injury puts his involvement in Saturday’s FA Cup semi-final clash into doubt, with City facing Championship side Sheffield United at Wembley. But it’s the Premier League clash with Arsenal that will be Pep Guardiola’s major concern, with Mikel Arteta’s side travelling to the Etihad in a potentially title-deciding fixture next Wednesday. The Gunners are currently four points clear at the top of table, but have a played a game more.

City also have a double header against Real Madrid to consider next month, with the Blues facing the European champions over two legs in a repeat of last season’s Champions League semi-final.

It’s why the injury to Ake has come at such a frustrating time for Guardiola, who has repeatedly praised the former Bournemouth man this season for his consistent showings and unique role in the team. Ake tends to start matches at centre-back but pushes out to left-back when City lose the ball. While there is no like-for-like replacement, Laporte seems to be the obvious alternative for Ake as he recuperates.