02 April 2023 , 21:30
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Erling Haaland should be back for Manchester City to face Southampton on Saturday.
City's formidable 42-goal forward watched from the stands as his team-mates beat Liverpool, after failing to recover from a groin issue. But City boss Pep Guardiola is confident he will have his star striker back for the trip to play Saints – and, crucially, next week's Champions League quarter-final first leg against Bayern Munich.
“Erling is getting better,” said Guardiola. “On Friday he felt a little bit better compared to the previous two days.
“It's five days to Southampton, so hopefully can still help us like he has all season.”
City's players have been given three days off and will return to training on Wednesday for the final push in a season that could still see them win the Treble.
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“The players need to rest,” said Guardiola. “I was on holiday in my hometown in Catalonia, but they were with their national teams.
“After that, if you continue in the Champions League or FA Cup, you have a lot of games. So, stay away, then we have three days to prepare for Southampton, then Bayern Munich, Leicester, Sheffield United and Arsenal.”
Despite not being fit to face Liverpool, Haaland was spotted celebrating wildly in the stands as his replacement, Julian Alvarez, put City back on level terms. The Argentinian striker finished off a well-worked move to set the home side on their way before a rampant start to the second half.
Haaland missed Man City's clash with Liverpool due to a groin injury (PAUL ELLIS/AFP via Getty Images)After the game, Alvarez drew praise from Peter Crouch and Rio Ferdinand for his performance in Haaland's absence. Crouch said on BT Sport: "I think he gets in every other Premier League team in the country. Just because he’s behind Haaland at the moment he’s not had the games he would have liked but he was a constant menace, involved in everything, constantly on the move, unselfish, draws players towards him, works hard. He’s a team player and he chips in with goals as well."
Ferdinand added: "That’s the perfect way to sum it up, he was magnificent. He’s one of the players he might be giving you a harder day’s work, without the amount of goals maybe, than Haaland when you play against him because of the amount of work he does.
"He’s so tenacious, I was watching him in the World Cup flying around, the amount of running, he is infectious for other people - around the stadium, not just on the pitch - and I think he’s a real asset. You have to tip your hat to the recruitment at the club for finding him for £12 million - unbelievable business."