Manchester, June 2 (IANS) Manchester City have confirmed that Mateo Kovacic has undergone surgery on an Achilles injury and the Croatian midfielder is now set to miss the FIFA Club World Cup in June.

Mateo will spend the summer rehabilitating from the operation. The midfielder had played 42 games for the club this season, while racking up seven goals and two assists, and will be a big miss for Pep Guardiola’s side at the

Freshly expanded into a 32-team month-long festival, this year’s inaugural edition of the new format of the Club World Cup sees many of the world’s best sides competing in 11 US cities.

City previously lifted the FIFA Club World Cup in 2023, when just seven teams were in attendance in Saudi Arabia, with the Blues needing to play just twice to earn the crown.

This time around, City is in one of eight groups of four alongside Wydad AC, Al Ain and Juventus – with all four sides competing for the right to play in the Round of 16.

From that point, there will be single knockout ties played across the US with the ultimate goal of reaching the final at the MetLife Stadium on July 13.

This competition is scheduled to be played every four years, with only the most successful sides of the previous qualification window making it.

It’s a dynamic addition to an already thorough football calendar, with City aiming to add yet another piece of silverware to their trophy cabinet.

Head coach Pep Guardiola recently spoke on the prospect of facing new teams for the first time.

“Even in domestic leagues, there are different managers, different cultures and different styles and ways to play. Of course, (at the Club World Cup) you could be playing a team from Oceania, from Asia, from South America… There are different visions and different types of players and cultures. That’s nice,” said Guardiola in an interview with FIFA.

–IANS

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