Manchester City winger Antoine Semenyo is expected to miss around eight weeks with a knee injury, manager Enzo Maresca confirmed on Monday, 19 October 2026.
The expected recovery timeline rules Semenyo out of Ghana’s Group C fixtures against Somalia, scheduled for 11 November (home) and 15 November (away) during the November international window. The Black Stars sit bottom of the group with zero points after opening defeats to Ivory Coast and Gambia, making the Somalia matches vital to keep their qualification hopes alive.
The former Bournemouth player sustained the injury late in City’s 3-2 Premier League victory over Ipswich Town on Saturday, 17 October 2026, at the Etihad Stadium. Semenyo came on as a substitute around the 76th minute, replacing Jérémy Doku, and was later seen limping after the final whistle.
The win extended City’s perfect start to the 2026/27 Premier League season to seven victories from seven matches, giving them 21 points and keeping them top of the table ahead of Arsenal on 18 points.
Scans carried out on Sunday showed the injury was less serious than initially feared. Speaking at his pre-match press conference ahead of City’s UEFA Champions League clash with AEK Athens on Tuesday night (20:00 UK time) at the Etihad, Maresca said:
“The rest are more or less okay. The only one that will be out for probably eight weeks is Antoine. In the first moment we expected an even worse injury so we were more worried. After yesterday’s scan we feel much better because it’s not so big like we expected. It could be eight weeks. Now in this moment the most important thing for him is his recovery. When he is back around December it will be like a new player in terms of energy.”
His absence removes a versatile attacking option capable of playing on either wing or through the middle. Other players such as Jérémy Doku, Iliman Ndiaye, or others in the attacking group are expected to see increased opportunities.
Maresca noted that losing any player is unwelcome and that the team has alternative solutions if needed for the No. 9 role, though he emphasised relying on Haaland while the Norwegian is available.
