De Bruyne fears festive fixture list may take toll

(Reuters) – Manchester City midfielder Kevin De Bruyne has expressed concern that the demanding festive fixture list, during which his side are scheduled to play four matches in 13 days, might affect his performance.

The Belgium international has been one of City’s leading lights this season, with nine goals and nine assists in just 17 starts and four substitute appearances.

“It’s a busy time of year and it’s difficult to say how I’ll feel personally by the end of December because I’ve never experienced the Christmas period in England before,” De Bruyne, who joined City from German side VfL Wolsburg in the close season, told British media.

“At (VfL) Wolfsburg, we had two-and-a-half weeks off but it’s something new to adapt to.

“It’s been tough so far because we’ve had a lot of games each month. If I’m on the field I’ll always give it my all but sometimes afterwards you think ‘Yeah, maybe I was a little bit tired’ and maybe it would have been better to have had a rest.

“But you don’t think about these things when you are playing. At the moment, I’m fine and we’ll see how things go, but if I was feeling fatigue then I would tell the coach.”

City, who are third in the Premier League table, will be looking to leapfrog second-placed Arsenal when they take on the Gunners at the Emirates on Monday.

(Reporting by Shravanth Vijayakumar in Bengaluru; Editing by John O’Brien)