Manchester City winger Leroy Sane suffered ankle ligament damage from horror Joe Bennett tackle

Manchester City have confirmed that Leroy Sané sustained ankle ligament damage during Sunday’s 2-0 FA Cup fourth round win over Cardiff City.

The 22-year-old winger was injured following a strong and late challenge by Cardiff left back Joe Bennett, who was later sent off for another poor tackle on Brahim Diaz.

Sané was substituted at half time by manager Pep Guardiola, who later suggested that the player could be sidelined for up to a month.

Scans were subsequently carried out on Sané’s left ankle and City confirmed on Monday that the winger was set for “a spell on the sidelines”, though no timeframe was given for his return.

After the final whistle on Sunday, Guardiola called for referees to provide players with protection from dangerous challenges.

“I said many times the only thing they [referees] have to do is protect the players,” the City manager said.

“Not the Man City players, all players. The only thing they can do is that – to protect the players – because it would not happen again. It happened once with Leroy, then it happened with Brahim again at the end.

“For the football in general, and for the players who are the artists, they must do that. That’s why we are all here.”

Bennett later apologised for his tackle on Sané, writing on Twitter: “Just want to apologise to Leroy Sané for my tackle today. I tried to stop the counter attack and completely mistimed my attempt.

“I didn’t mean to catch him like I did. I hope it’s nothing serious and he recovers quickly.”

Sané has scored 11 goals and provided 14 assists in all competitions for City this season, making 33 appearances in total.