Man City fall short vs Liverpool FC as Pep Guardiola explains Kevin De Bruyne absence

Here are your Manchester City evening headlines for Saturday, April 16.

Manchester City fall short after spirited fightback vs Liverpool

City responded to a terrible first-half display during their 3-2 FA Cup semi-final defeat to Liverpool with a valiant second-half performance. The Premier League champions went into the break 3-0 down, conceding twice after 17 minutes.

Ibrahima Konate nodded home a corner on nine minutes before Sadio Mane tackled the ball home after catching out a hesitant Zack Steffen in a calamitous episode. He got another before the interval but Jack Grealish scored two minutes after the break to provide a lifeline for City before Bernardo Silva netted a second in stoppage time.

READ MORE:Man City player ratings vs Liverpool as Zack Steffen suffers at Wembley

Pep Guardiola’s men had a handful of half-chances in the final few moments but couldn’t quite get over the line. It means the club have been knocked out in the semi-finals of the FA Cup for a third consecutive year.

Read what else went on in the full match report here.

Kevin De Bruyne named on bench but not brought on

Guardiola revealed after the game that he decided not to bring on Kevin De Bruyne, despite being behind, to prevent the risk of further injury. The playmaker picked up a knock to the ankle in the midweek aggregate Champions League quarter-final win over Atletico Madrid.

The Belgian magician was named on the bench and was seen warming up on the touchline at one point. But his boss decided against using his star man with a crucial run-in period ahead.

“Yesterday he had four stitches in the right foot when he hit the ball,” Guardiola said. “He can walk and he can run, but if he plays and opens stitches maybe we lose him