Erling Haaland missed Manchester City’s 1-0 win over Leeds United after sustaining a minor injury in training, and Josep Guardiola provided an update ahead of their clash with Nottingham Forest.
Manchester City striker Erling Haaland (Image: Robbie Jay Barratt – AMA/Getty Images)
Erling Haaland feels “much better” but will undergo a test after Manchester City’s training on Tuesday before a decision will be made on whether he can play against Nottingham Forest. Haaland missed the Leeds trip after picking up a minor bruise in training on Thursday, and Pep Guardiola was unable to confirm his fitness outlook immediately after the game.
The Norwegian striker’s availability for this game remains in doubt, but City are hoping he will feature after a weekend’s rest. Similarly, Nico O’Reilly, who limped off with an ankle injury sustained during the 1-0 win against Leeds, was able to take part in Sunday’s recovery session.
“He’s feeling much better, but he didn’t train yesterday. He’s training now and we’ll decide today,” Guardiola said of Haaland in Tuesday’s pre-match press conference.
City coped well without their talismanic striker, with Antoine Semenyo scoring the only goal of the game while playing up front with Omar Marmouche, and Guardiola didn’t seem too worried before kick-off at the weekend. “He had some problems and a minor injury in training two days ago. It’s not a big problem but he’s not ready for today,” he said at Elland Road.
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More than that, City’s injury situation looks encouraging in their pursuit of silver medal this season. Jeremy Doku returned to the matchday squad for the first time in the Premier League against Leeds, while Savinho came on as a substitute in the second period, making his first appearance since picking up the injury on New Year’s Day.
This leaves Mateo Kovacic and Josko Gvardiol as the only absentees, with Guardiola expressing optimism that Kovacic has resumed training.
Guardiola added: “It’s an honor to be here in March and to be able to play in all the competitions. It’s a dream.” “It’s an honour. Last season we competed but we missed out on the Champions League and the FA Cup. Next Saturday we have two games against Newcastle and Real Madrid. If we win, we continue with that game, but if we don’t win we continue with the break in that competition. That’s the only thing I’m worried about.”
Pep Guardiola wants Erling Haaland back (Image: Visionhaus, Visionhaus/Getty Images)
City will be aiming to close the gap on Arsenal as both teams play at the same time on Wednesday night. City welcome Forest, while Arsenal travel to Brighton, the team that beat Forest at the weekend. Arsenal have one game remaining, but the difference between the two teams is five points.
Following Forest, City have two important trips to prepare for, with Saturday’s crucial FA Cup game against Newcastle and the first leg of the Champions League last-16 clash in Madrid. Haaland has already found the back of the net at the Bernabéu but is yet to score in four attempts against Newcastle this season.
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