MANCHESTER, England (AP) — Jeremy Doku was injured and forced off before halftime as Manchester City advanced to the last 16 of the Champions League with a 2-0 win over Galatasaray on Wednesday.
The Belgium international went down under a challenge from Davinson Sanchez and was unable to continue after hurting his calf, with Phil Foden replacing him in the 37th minute.
Doku has been one of City’s most effective players this season. Manager Pep Guardiola said the forward was likely to miss the Premier League game against Tottenham on Sunday.
The 23-year-old Doku provided assists for both of City’s goals, scored by Erling Haaland and Rayan Cherki.
It was not clear what the nature of the injury was, but Doku was able to walk off the field receiving applause from the home fans at Etihad Stadium.
City led 2-0 at halftime in what was an impressive response to last week’s shock 3-1 loss to tiny Bodø/Glimt, which placed doubt over whether the 2023 Champions League winner would directly qualify for the round of 16.
City’s players were so apologetic about their performance in Norway that they refunded ticket costs for fans who traveled to the match.
Haaland’s goal was his 40th for City and Norway this season and ended a five-game scoring drought.
Cherki’s was his eighth for City in an impressive debut season for the club and his third in his last five games.
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James Robson is at https://x.com/jamesalanrobson
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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
