A report in the Daily Mail has revealed that Manchester City paid injured players a total of £24.95m over the course of last season. Pep Guardiola’s side went on to be crowned Premier League champions but this figure will concern the clubs hierarchy. Only Manchester United paid more to injured players (£25.7m) during the 2018/19 campaign.
The report claims Kevin De Bruyne suffered five separate injuries and with the Belgian star being on £350k per week that would mean he received £8.4m in wages when unavailable for selection.
Wolves, who finished 7th last season were at the complete opposite end of the spectrum. Granted, their wage bill is significantly lower to that of Manchester City’s but their figure of £889k compared to the Champions’ total outlay on injured players puts the figure into context.
Should players receive reduced wages when unavailable?
Yes
No
Injuries at a cost
Injuries are part and parcel of the game and often they are down to bad luck more than anything else. Obviously those with bigger wage bills are at a disadvantage when these figures are scrutinised and so it simply isn’t as straight forward as saying City wasted £24m more than Wolves last season – income/expenditure and profit/loss must also be taken into account.
However, the figures make interesting reading and highlight not only the size of the wage bills at both Manchester clubs but also the impact injuries can have financially and why it isn’t as simple as dipping into the transfer market every January to replace crocked stars.
City will hope De Bruyne, in particular, can remain fit for the duration of the season as he will be key in their attempts to retain their Premier League crown.