I don't think so: Pep Guardiola on Erling Haaland's return to Man City squad ahead of Wolves clash
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Haaland has scored 30 goals this season for Manchester City.
Erling Haaland acknowledged last week that he has made a major stride back towards his injury recovery, although manager Pep Guardiola had a different stance about his star’s fitness.
Erling Haaland’s prospects of starting on the bench for Manchester City against Wolves tomorrow night have been minimised by Pep Guardiola. Haaland resumed training on Wednesday and wrote “back training with the team” in a social media post on Wednesday evening.
Since suffering an ankle injury against Bournemouth in the FA Cup quarterfinals in March, the Norway striker, who has scored 30 goals this season, has been out. Although Guardiola claims he is getting better, he is uncertain if he will be able to play against Wolves.
The City manager responded as follows when asked if Haaland could make the bench: “I don’t think so. He is getting better.”
It seems the Spanish manager doesn’t want to take any risk with the former Borussia Dortmund striker. Guardiola will employ the forward when he feels the City forward is fully fit. City still have a few matches left to play this season.
They are currently fourth in the Premier League and will be hoping to secure a spot in the Champions League next season.
Guardiola aims to get Rodri available for the FA Cup Final on May 17 after he returned to training following the devastating injury he sustained in September.
Guardiola is adamant not to rush the Ballon d’Or winner back and will heed medical advice because City’s season collapsed without him.
“We’re really pleased that Rodri is back,” he said. “The moment a doctor says he can start to play minutes, after that he will start to play minutes. It’s a difficult injury, seven to 11 months the doctors said.”
“He feels really good making sessions, but we have to avoid making a step backwards and him getting injured again. One training session, another one, after that feel better.”
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After earning a bachelor's degree in mass media, Rajarshi began his career as a sports writer in 2019, driven by his passion for sports journalism. He has been working in the field for over six years. A devoted fan of Lionel Messi and Barcelona, Rajarshi has been involved in sports since childhood. Before turning his focus to journalism, he even represented his college at the state level. Along with covering football, he enjoys playing the game, watching movies, and experimenting with new recipes in his spare time, as cooking is one of his favorite hobbies.