Manchester City will be without Erling Haaland for an indefinite period and faces a fight to play again in the Premier League this season after further details of his new injury were released on Monday night. The striker sustained an ankle problem over the weekend in his side’s 2-1 win over Bournemouth in the FA Cup.
Haaland has since undergone initial tests on the problem and, whilst the full extent of the problem is still unclear, he faces a significant lay-off. There is hope that he will feature before the campaign concludes but those minutes may come in the new format of the Club World Cup in the summer rather than in the league or FA Cup.
The former Borussia Dortmund No.9 had attempted to continue after initially receiving treatment from the medical team at the Vitality Stadium. However, just a matter of seconds later, Haaland dropped to the ground and conceded that he would need to be substituted off in the 61st minute.
A statement from City read: “Manchester City FC can confirm that Erling Haaland has suffered an injury to his left ankle. The Norwegian striker sustained the injury during Sunday’s FA Cup quarter-final victory away at AFC Bournemouth.
“Erling underwent initial tests in Manchester on Monday morning and will now seek specialist consultation to confirm the full extent of the injury.
“Assessment remains ongoing to ascertain a full prognosis. The expectation is that Erling will be fit in time to play a further part in the remainder of this season, including this summer’s FIFA Club World Cup. Everyone at the Club wishes Erling a speedy recovery and mancity.com will bring you regular updates regarding his rehabilitation.”
Pep Guardiola will be relying on January signing Omar Marmoush to ensure that Haaland’s absence does not derail City’s campaign any further, having failed to challenge for the Premier League title, Carabao Cup or the Champions League this season.
Haaland has been one of City’s few saving graces throughout the campaign, scoring 29 goals in 40 appearances in all competitions, despite lacking service at times and generally not playing the best football of his career.
Winning the FA Cup would ensure that Guardiola’s side bow out of the campaign on a more positive note ahead of an expected summer spending spree.
They came from behind to beat Bournemouth on Sunday and book their spot in the semi-finals, with Haaland missing a penalty before Evanilson opened the scoring in the first half. Haaland then equalised in the 49th minute before Marmoush came off of the bench to turn the tie on its head. City face Nottingham Forest in the final four at Wembley in April.
