Erling Haaland has been spotted limping into Manchester City ’s medical centre with Pep Guardiola facing an anxious wait over his fitness ahead of this weekend’s clash with Leicester City.
The Norwegian was withdrawn after the first 45 minutes of his reunion with former club Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League on Tuesday evening. His substitution was questioned shortly after the full-time whistle at the Signal Iduna Park, with boss Guardiola suggesting that Haaland was battling a couple of problems during the game.
Now, upon the side’s return to Manchester, Haaland has been spotted limping into his assessment as City attempt to get to the bottom of his problem. He was flanked by a couple of club officials - albeit he did have a big smile on his face.
The Norwegian was clad in casual clothing and it appears that club officials can relax over his fitness. According to the Daily Star, the striker has been cleared of a serious foot injury having left the medical centre without a protective boot.
Speaking to reporters in Germany, Guardiola said: "[There were] three things. I saw him [Haaland] so tired. Second one, he had a little bit of influenza in his body. Like Joao - Joao had a fever.
"Then the third, he had a knock in his foot. That's why he was not able to play the second half. I spoke with [the medical staff] at half-time and they were a little bit concerned, but I saw him walking more or less normally. We will see."
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Those comments instantly put Haaland’s inclusion against Leicester City at the King Power Stadium in doubt with the Norwegian keen to continue the electric form that he has displayed since his £51m switch to the Etihad Stadium in the summer.
The 22-year-old already has 17 goals to his name in just 11 Premier League appearances but he was not able to continue that goalscoring form during his return to Dortmund.
Haaland endured a hugely frustrating evening having been starved of chances to score before being withdrawn in place of Bernardo Silva.
The same however can certainly be said of his Man City teammates on what turned out to be a regretful evening in Germany. Despite having already qualified for the last-16 of the competition, City were aiming to earn victory against the German side and rubber-stamp top spot in the group.
The best chance of the game fell to Riyad Mahrez, who earned a penalty having drawn a foul from former Liverpool star Emre Can. However, the Algerian spurned the chance to give his side the lead in the second-half with his poor effort being saved by Dortmund stopper Gregor Kobel.
Should Haaland miss out against Leicester this weekend, he will be hopeful of returning in City’s final Champions League group game against Sevilla at the Etihad Stadium next week.
