Manchester City’s Josko Gvardiol reveals 10-month battle with knee problem | OneFootball

Josko Gvardiol is facing an ongoing battle with a long-standing knee issue, but has found a solution to maintaining fitness and preventing any serious injury.

The 23-year-old has been a huge success since his £77 million move to the Etihad Stadium from RB Leipzig in 2023, having filled in brilliantly as a makeshift left-back for the Blues in his first two seasons in England.

City have heavily leaned on the Croatia international to fill a gaping hole at left-back since his arrival, with Gvardiol’s minutes largely restricted to the wide left of the backline until the business end of the 2024-25 campaign – when Pep Guardiola decided to test a centre-half partnership between Ruben Dias and Gvardiol.

Gvardiol has since remained an ever-present for Manchester City in defence and with his best years ahead of him, the defender is expected to keep growing from strength to strength and play a pivotal role for the Blues in the seasons to follow.

City endured their most challenging season under Guardiola last term but Gvardiol enjoyed a very successful campaign personally and stood out in an injury-riddled and indifferent backline that witnessed urgent reinforcements in the form of Abdukodir Khusanov and Vitor Reis in January.

Guardiola remembers players who are in the trenches for him during times of difficulty and the 54-year-old Catalan has showered praise on Gvardiol, who was an ever-present figure – often out of position – for the Blues in sobering year for all in the backdrop of four successive Premier League title triumphs.

Gvardiol has admitted concerns over his playing time for Manchester City in interviews recently, having spent the opening month of the 2025-26 season on the sidelines with injury as his side lost to Tottenham and Brighton in their first three Premier League games.

In a new interview with Men’s Health Magazine, Gvardiol has detailed the process he goes through on a daily basis to prevent any damage to a long-standing knee issue he has been dealing with.

“I stretch and do mobility for at least half-an-hour. And then after that I like to go to the gym – I’ve been struggling with patella tendonitis for the last 10 months, so I need to do a lot of exercises for my knees,” the Croatia international said.

“And then I move onto some split squats as well, timing them so that I’m ready to go straight out on the pitch before we start training. It’s really important for me to keep the tendon warm so that I’m ready to run and train outside.”

“It depends how I feel. If I feel good, then I go a bit heavier, but if my knee is sore then I reduce the weight so that I don’t place too much pressure on it.

“The most important thing is that I’m consistent and do it every day, or at least every two days, otherwise I risk needing time off through injury again because of my knee.”

Guardiola will be desperate to keep Gvardiol fit and firing for the remainder of the campaign as Manchester City look to challenge on all fronts after revamping their squad in the summer, having finished the recent campaign trophyless.