Man City hit by huge injury blow as Pep Guardiola confirms major setback

Pep Guardiola says a Manchester City star will be ruled out for two months through injury following their crushing defeat at Brighton.

Man City suffered their second consecutive Premier League defeat on Sunday.

They lost 2-1 to Brighton, having succumbed to Thomas Frank's Tottenham last weekend.

That's despite taking the lead at the Amex Stadium when Erling Haaland opened the scoring in the 34th minute.

But the hosts hit back with two second-half goals, including Brajan Gruda's strike one minute before time.

Rayan Cherki was absent from Guardiola's squad for their game against Brighton.

And after his side's defeat, the Man City boss confirmed Cherki will be out of action for two months after picking up an injury.

According to a post from France's official social media account, Cherki has a 'quadriceps tear'.

Pep Guardiola says Rayan Cherki will be out for two months. Image: Getty

Cherki came off the bench in Man City's Premier League opener against Wolves and scored in his side's 4-0 victory at Molineux.

He played from the start against Spurs and didn't feature at Brighton.

The 22-year-old has subsequently been replaced by Liverpool forward Hugo Ekitike in Didier Deschamps' France squad for their upcoming fixtures during the international break.

That means he is expected to miss Man City's games against Manchester United and Arsenal.

The Blues welcome Ruben Amorim's Man United to the Etihad on September 14 before travelling to the Emirates the following weekend.

Cherki also looks set to miss Man City's opening two Champions League fixtures against Napoli and Monaco.

What did Pep Guardiola say after Man City's defeat to Brighton?

Guardiola not only confirmed Cherki's injury after Man City's defeat at Brighton but also shared his assessment of the match.

He believes his team were 'excellent for one hour' before lamenting how they unfolded after Brighton's equaliser.

"We were excellent for one hour, many things I like for many months - so I'm not complaining about... But we are not able to win games. And after the goal, we shift, we forgot to play, we were more thinking about the consequences, and that's why we could not win the game," he told BBC Radio Manchester.

"I like many, many things that we are doing, and it's a question of time to make a click. Now the transfer window will be finished, and when we come back we will see the real squad."