Pep Guardiola responds to Phil Foden 'broken hand' claims after Man City's nightmare defeat

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Pep Guardiola has denied claims Manchester City midfielder Phil Foden suffered a broken hand after falling awkwardly on it against Manchester United . Towards the end of the first half, the England international fell down and broke his fall with his hand.

It was an uncomfortable landing and when Guardiola's side emerged for the second half, Foden was nowhere to be seen. He was taken off for summer signing Rayan Cherki.

After the match, speculation started doing the rounds suggesting he may have suffered a hand injury. This would have rubbed salt into a torrid afternoon which ended with United beating Guardiola's side 2-0 , handing a much needed victory to the Red Devils' new interim manager Michael Carrick.

When Foden went down the tunnel at half-time, he was accompanied by a member of City's medical team. His arm could be seen propped up in a set position, suggesting they were trying to protect it.

However, Guardiola has played down reports Foden may have broken his hand. When asked if Foden had suffered an injury, the ex-Barcelona manager quickly replied: "No, I don't think so."

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If it had been a serious injury, it would have come at an awkward time for Foden, with the World Cup on the horizon and only six months to prove to England manager Thomas Tuchel he is the one who should be orchestrating England's midfield.

Foden has enjoyed an improved campaign compared to last season, helping himself to seven goals and two assists in 20 Premier League appearances. However, he is also competing for the No. 10 spot against Jude Bellingham , Cole Palmer, Morgan Rogers and Eberechi Eze.

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Foden was called up to the last international squad and contributed an assist in the 2-0 home victory over Serbia. The next international break will surely be crucial when it comes to informing Tuchel's decision for this summer's World Cup in the USA, Mexico and Canada.

England face Uruguay and Japan in international friendlies at Wembley Stadium at the end of March. However, the more pressing issue for City as a whole is the fact they are losing even more ground on Arsenal .

Before the derby at Old Trafford, they were six points away from Premier League leaders Arsenal. They are in danger of finishing the weekend nine points behind Mikel Arteta's side with 16 matches left to play.

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After the match, City midfielder Bernardo Silva said: "They deserved to win today. They had more energy and intention. It always felt like they were close to scoring and we were never there.

“We gave them what they want. They took the game to where they are good and we are not so good. Since I arrived here in England we have always been a very controlled team.

"There was a lot of things missing from us. Definitely a bad day for us. It is a big gap [to Arsenal], we won’t lie and say it isn’t a big gap it is. We will fight until the end.”

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