Ideally, teams expect the players bought in the transfer window along with the players already at the club to link up with their team-mates and work for a considerable amount of time with the manager and have a good pre-season under their belts. But there are situations when the deal for the player is not complete until after the season starts or unfortunately, players can get injured during pre-season or sometimes they carry an injury from last season. There have been similar cases in this year’s transfer window and while it will be a blow to the respective teams, it presents an opportunity to another member of the squad to step in and impress the manager.
Three important players who are injured going into the season are as discussed below.
ILKAY GUNDOGAN
Manchester City have been linked with the former Bundesliga midfield ace ever since Pep Guardiola was announced as the man to be taking over from Manuel Pellegrini. But an injury to the ex-Borussia Dortmund star raised questions about City’s plans regarding the deal. But the decision to go ahead with the signing has put across the player’s importance in Pep’s scheme of things.
Guardiola loves technically sound midfielders in his teams who are able to dictate the pace of the game and move the ball around while retaining possession. Gundogan fits that bill perfectly. Manchester City would have ideally wanted to start the season with the German in the team but will have to navigate the all-important Champions league qualifier minus the services of Gundogan. September can’t come soon enough for the City fans who want to see him back in action as soon as possible.
LORIS KARIUS
Simon Mignolet has largely failed to impress during his 3-year stint at Anfield and despite being their No.1 choice, there was always uncertainty at the back as the Belgian was prone to errors and could not marshall the backline satisfactorily.
This led to Klopp signing Loris Karius from Mainz and the keeper was expected to replace Mignolet as the No.1 in the team. With Klopp gradually building his team, the unfortunate injury of Karius struck in pre-season training wherein he broke his arm thus ruling him out for 2 months. Though Mignolet will get another chance to prove his worth, it certainly upsets Klopp’s plans for the new season.
JAN VERTONGHEN
The Belgian had formed a formidable partnership with his fellow countryman Toby Alderweireld at the heart of Spurs defence. The duo was largely responsible for the solidity and compact nature of the Spurs team as they helped play out from the back and marshalled the game from their deeper positions.
Their understanding helped Alderweireld have a breakthrough season where he mightily impressed at both ends of the pitch. Pochettino would have liked to have his main men in defence lining up from the start but has his hands tied as Vertonghen suffered an unfortunate injury during the Euros. Tottenham have to look for a suitable alternative to hold the fort while the lanky Belgian recuperates from his latest setback.
