Injured De Bruyne completes City training in Seoul

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Injured De Bruyne completes City training in Seoul

Published: 30 Jul. 2023, 13:32

Manchester City players train at Seoul World Cup Stadium in Mapo District, western Seoul on Saturday ahead of Sunday's preseason game against Atletico Madrid. [NEWS1]

Manchester City completed their training Saturday in front of a large crowd of Korean fans at Seoul World Cup Stadium in western Seoul.

City arrived in Korea Thursday to participate in the Coupang Play Series — an annual exhibition series launched last year — where the team will play Atletico Madrid on Sunday.

A large number of Korean football fans wearing City jerseys gathered at the stadium to see City’s open training session, where their skills were on display.

The fans started out loud and only got louder when they saw Erling Haaland step onto the pitch shortly after other players came on.

City divided their squad in two groups and played a short practice game, showing the fans what the team will offer in Sunday’s match.

Kevin De Bruyne also took part in the training and put on a show, despite his injury.

The training ended with all City players applauding the fans’ support, with some players, including De Bruyne took pictures with the fans and autographed their jerseys after training.

The Belgian midfielder seems to be in good form, but Pep Guardiola may still bench him on Sunday to avoid further injury.

City saw great success last season, winning the treble, including the Champions League for the first time in club history.

Sunday’s match will kick off at 8 p.m.

BY PAIK JI-HWAN [paik.jihwan@joongang.co.kr]