Manchester City have confirmed Kevin De Bruyne will be out for three months with a knee ligament injury.
The club's Player of the Year suffered the injury to his right knee on Wednesday in training, with initial reports suggesting ligament damage.
The Premier League champions have now confirmed that the Belgian has suffered damage to the lateral collateral ligament and is expected to be out for around three months.
The only good news from City is that De Bruyne has not needed surgery on the problem.
A statement from the club read: "Manchester City can confirm Kevin De Bruyne has suffered a lateral collateral ligament (LCL) lesion in his right knee.
"No surgery is required, and the midfielder is expected to be out for around three months. Everyone at City wishes him a speedy return to action."
The 27-year-old was City's Player of the Year last season after scoring 12 goals and setting up 21, and is set to miss some big fixtures for the club if he takes the full three months to get back to action.
City face Liverpool (October 7) and Tottenham (October 28) in October while the Manchester derby against United at the Etihad is scheduled for November 11, which is just under three months away.
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