Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has admitted he does not know the full extent of the injury suffered to Erling Haaland in the Premier League clash against Aston Villa.
Haaland was withdrawn at half time after colliding with Villa goalkeeper Emi Martinez, with the Norway international coming away from the clash in discomfort. Moments later, he was captured by Sky Sports cameras receiving treatment from City's medical staff.
Perhaps as an indication of his problem, a late first half penalty was instead taken by Riyad Mahrez with Haaland then not returning back after the interval. Julian Alvarez was his replacement and Guardiola gave an update on his condition after the game.
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Speaking to Sky Sports when asked for the early extent of his injury, he said: "I don't know, he had a big knock and he wasn't comfortable. We will see and we will assess in the next days. If he's not ready, we'll play another one. Hopefully he's ready like everyone but we'll see."
Prior to Mahrez's goal, which put City three goals in front, Rodri and Ilkay Gundogan both found the back of the net from close-range. Ollie Watkins scored a consolation goal for Villa, but City were able to hold out for the remainder of the game despite Philippe Coutinho and Jhon Duran going close.
Up next for City is arguably their biggest game of the season against Premier League leaders Arsenal who failed to maintain the five-point gap between themselves and their title rivals. Mikel Arteta's side were unable to end their run of games without a win after being held to a draw by Brentford.
The equaliser from Ivan Toney, after Leandro Trossard scored the opener, was surrounded in controversy with VAR Lee Mason not drawing the correct lines when checking for offside. The role of Ethan Pinnock in the build up was studied by Mason and he therefore missed the position of Christian Norgaard, who provided the assist to Toney, who was in an offside position.
Those dropped points and City's win now means that Guardiola's side could head to the top of the Premier League table for the first time this season if they beat the Gunners in north London. However, it remains to be seen whether or not Haaland will be available given his injury-related withdrawal and Guardiola's brief update.
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