Manchester City will face Salford City in the fourth round of the FA Cup on Saturday without striker Erling Haaland.
The Norway international has come under fire recently for a drop-off in form, including a failure to score in the 10–1 thumping of Exeter City in the last round of this competition.
He won’t get the chance to banish those demons on Saturday, however. Here’s why Haaland is missing for Man City.
Pep Guardiola’s Pre-Match Admission
Haaland did not complete 90 minutes last time out, leaving at half-time of a scoring effort against Fulham. Manager Pep Guardiola soon confirmed the striker had suffered a knock.
Asked whether Haaland would be fit enough to face Salford, Guardiola told Friday’s press conference: “Erling’s not 100%. It’s not a big issue, the doctor said to me. But had some disturbance before and during the game and that’s why second half he didn’t play.
“We will see his evolution.“
Haaland was not spotted in City’s training photos from Friday’s session, having failed to sufficiently shake off the knock in time for Saturday’s fourth-round affair.
In reality, the fixture comes at an ideal time for City, who are overwhelming favourites to see off Salford even without their top scorer. Saturday’s visitors are locked in a promotion battle in League Two and City will back themselves to cruise to victory regardless of who is playing.
By protecting Haaland, Guardiola will hope his star striker is healthy again for the visit of Newcastle United next Saturday.
Man City Confirmed XI vs. Salford
Starting in Haaland’s place in attack is Omar Marmoush, who joins Phil Foden and Rayan Cherki in an exciting forward trio.
Gianluigi Donnarumma, Rodri, Marc Guéhi and Antoine Semenyo are among those named on the bench, with Bernardo Silva also joining Haaland on the sidelines.
Man City starting XI vs. Salford (4-3-3): Trafford; Khusanov, Stones, Alleyne, Aït-Nouri; Nico, Lewis, Reijnders; Foden, Marmoush, Cherki.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Why Erling Haaland Isn’t Playing for Man City vs. Salford.
