Pep Guardiola explains why Kevin de Bruyne was left on the bench in Manchester City's FA Cup semifinal loss to Liverpool.The Belgian midfielder needed stitches in his foot after limping off in the bruising midweek Champions League tie with Atletico Madrid, but he was still selected among the substitutes at Wembley.De Bruyne felt fit enough to play against Jurgen Klopp's side after spending time warming up in the second half, but Guardiola chose against bringing him off the bench to prevent aggravating the playmaker's injury.
"When he hit the ball, he still had four stitches in his right foot," Guardiola said in his post-match press conference. He could walk and run, but the ball was bothering him, and if he continues to play and opens two or three stitches, we may lose him even more."Of course, Kevin was pleased with his condition and could play from the start since he feels healthy, or possibly in the second half, but I didn't want to risk losing him in case the injury reopened or an infection developed.
"That's why I made that choice." These circumstances can arise when you play a lot of games, especially difficult ones.
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