Football today: Man City hit by huge injury blow, Arsenal land keeper, Harry Maguire move in doubt

Kevin De Bruyne damaged his hamstring during the match between Man City and Burnley.

We take a look at some of the main stories that have happened on Tuesday so far:

De Bruyne facing up to four months out and may require surgery

Pep Guardiola says Manchester City star Kevin De Bruyne faces up to four months out and could require surgery on a hamstring injury. The 32-year-old was forced off in the first half of June’s Champions League final triumph against Inter Milan and did not play a single minute of pre-season. De Bruyne returned from that hamstring issue as a second-half substitute in the Community Shield shoot-out loss to Arsenal and captained the side against Burnley in Friday’s Premier League opener. But the Belgium playmaker only lasted 23 minutes at Turf Moor, where seemingly out of nothing he signalled to the bench that he had felt something. Guardiola said after the game at Burnley that the issue related to the same hamstring and would see him miss a few weeks, but it appears worse than first feared. “It’s serious, the injury,” the City boss said. “We have to decide if it’s surgery or not surgery, but it will be a few months out.”

Arsenal sign Brentford goalkeeper Raya on loan

Arsenal have completed the signing of goalkeeper David Raya from Brentford on a season-long loan, with an option for a permanent transfer. The 27-year-old played in all 38 of the Bees’ Premier League games last season keeping 11 clean sheets and conceding 46 goals. He will compete with England international Aaron Ramsdale for the number one position as Mikel Arteta’s team look to build on last season’s title challenge, whilst also playing in the Champions League for the first time since 2017. Gunners’ sporting director Edu said: “We welcome David to us on a season-long loan from Brentford. David is a top-quality goalkeeper, who has consistently performed to a high level with Brentford in the Premier League. With David joining us we are adding quality and depth to our squad so we can perform at the highest possible level in all competitions.”

Maguire’s move to West Ham in doubt

Former Manchester United captain Harry Maguire’s move to West Ham has stalled, according to Press Association. The 30-year-old centre-back became the most expensive defender in history when joining the Old Trafford giants from Leicester for £80million in 2019. Maguire was swiftly handed the captain’s armband, but a lack of form and game time led Erik ten Hag to last month name Bruno Fernandes as United’s new skipper. West Ham’s initial £20m bid for the England international was rejected before an improved offer in the region of £30m was accepted by the Red Devils last week. But it is understood the Hammers are looking at other potential options as the move has stalled, albeit the transfer is not dead. Maguire was an unused substitute on Monday as United beat Wolves 1-0 and a resolution between selling club and player is thought to be a key part of the hold up. David Moyes’ Europa Conference League champions have signed Ajax’s Edson Alvarez and Southampton captain James Ward-Prowse in recent days.

Spain must be ready for ultimate challenge of World Cup final

Salma Paralluelo has called on Spain to “face the ultimate challenge” after reaching the World Cup final with a 2-1 win against Sweden. A cagey game with few clear-cut chances suddenly sparked into life with three goals in the last 10 minutes. Barcelona winger Paralluelo put Spain ahead in the 81st minute before Sweden soon levelled with a cool finish from Rebecka Blomqvist. However, just one minute later Olga Carmona grabbed the winner with a wonderful first-time strike from a short corner, and Paralluelo praised the resilience of her side, who reached their first-ever World Cup final. “It was a very tough game. It could have been difficult to recover from their goal, but we’ve shown that this team can deal with everything,” the 19-year-old told FIFA’s website. "We deserved this. We took this little step, and now we need that final push. Now it’s the final. I think we have to do what we’ve done in every match. We’ve overcome every challenge and now we face the ultimate challenge, the big one.”

Trio extend Ross County stays

Ross County have extended the contracts of influential trio Jack Baldwin, Connor Randall and Jordan White. Captain Baldwin, 30, has made 70 appearances for the Staggies since joining two summers ago, 27-year-old Randall has featured 86 times since his arrival in 2020 while striker White, 31, has scored 23 goals in 105 outings for the Dingwall side over the past two and a half years. County are yet to announce the length of the deals but manager Malky Mackay is pleased to have secured three of his most senior players beyond the end of this season. “I am delighted to tie down Jack, Connor and Jordan and keep them at the club,” he told the County website. “They are all experienced senior professionals and their commitment on our journey has been unwavering. They are all leaders on and off the pitch. Combined, they have played over 1000 games, and it’s important to keep this experience at the club, while also rewarding consistency.”