Will Erling Haaland Play for Man City vs. Nottingham Forest?

The Norwegian sat out the win over Leeds United through injury and doubts remain.

Erling Haaland’s a big miss when he’s not playing for the former Premier League champions. | Robbie Jay Barratt/AMA/Getty Images

A disjointed performance away at Leeds United highlighted why Manchester City fans are so eager to witness the return of striker Erling Haaland.

It was during February’s victory over Fulham that concerns over Haaland’s condition first arose. He was withdrawn at half-time after complaining of what Pep Guardiola described as “niggles.” When he played 90 minutes 10 days later, it seemed the injury was not worth worrying about.

Now, however, the concerns are back. Haaland was left out against Leeds and had to watch from the sidelines as Antoine Semenyo netted the only goal of an uncomfortable 1–0 victory.

Nottingham Forest are coming to town on Wednesday and fans are all asking the same question: Will Haaland play?

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Guardiola Rates Haaland’s Chances of Playing

Pep Guardiola wants Haaland back as soon as possible. | Visionhaus/Getty Images

Haaland’s availability for Wednesday’s game was first approached after the win over Leeds, when Guardiola insisted he simply “did not have an answer” at that point but assured fans Haaland’s injury was “not a big issue.”

Three days later, Guardiola was pushed for clarity during his pre-match press conference.

“He feels much better but yesterday we didn’t train,” Haaland told reporters when asked for an update on his top scorer. “Today, we are [training] so we will decide after that.”

Haaland will clearly be involved in City’s training session, suggesting he is in with a strong chance of playing, but Guardiola will be reluctant to take any risks over a player who has scored just under one third of his team’s total goals this season across all competitions (29 of 90).

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Who Could Replace Haaland vs. Nottingham Forest?

Antoine Semenyo (center) scored in Haaland’s absence. | Robbie Jay Barratt/AMA/Getty Images

Guardiola’s plan to cover for Haaland’s absence against Leeds took a few supporters by surprise.

Predictably, Omar Marmoush was part of the setup. The expensive Egyptian is the only other natural striker in the squad and has been waiting for opportunities in attack, having been forced into accepting the same midfield role occupied by his predecessor, Julián Alvarez, as it quickly became clear there is no displacing a healthy Haaland in the squad.

Marmoush seems almost certain to play once again, but he may not be the focal point of City’s attack. Against Leeds, Guardiola deployed a rarely seen two-striker formation that gave winter signing Antoine Semenyo more freedom up top.

The tactical gamble paid off as Semenyo netted the game’s only goal, and the former Bournemouth winger would appear set for another integral role against Forest if Haaland does not make it back in time.

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