MANCHESTER, England (AP) — Manchester City midfielder Mateo Kovacic was ruled out of the Club World Cup after undergoing surgery on an Achilles injury, the English team said Monday.
“Mateo will spend the summer rehabilitating from the operation,” City said, “and everyone at the club wishes him a speedy recovery.”
The expanded 32-team Club World Cup starts on June 14, with City in the same group as Juventus, Al Ain and Wydad Casablanca. City’s first match is on June 18.
Kovacic will also miss Croatia’s World Cup qualifiers against Gibraltar and the Czech Republic over the next week.
City has Ballon d’Or winner Rodri back to fitness to add to manager Pep Guardiola’s midfield options for the Club World Cup.
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