Manchester City head coach Pep Guardiola provided an update on Erling Haaland's injury, mentioning that the Norwegian star is expected to be sidelined for five to seven weeks.
Haaland suffered an ankle injury in the FA Cup quarter-final against Bournemouth at Vitality Stadium on March 30. The 24-year-old's absence from the pitch is a blow for Man City, especially at this stage of the campaign.
After having quite a few hiccups this season, City will be looking to finish among the top four on the Premier League table to ensure qualification in the UEFA Champions League for the next campaign and also bag the FA Cup.
While addressing the press ahead of City's Premier League clash against Leicester City on April 2, Guardiola mentioned that Haaland can possibly return to the pitch for the FIFA Club World Cup by the end of the season.
"The doctors told me between five and seven weeks. So hopefully for the end of season and FIFA Club World Cup he will be ready. Sometimes there are years where these kinds of things happen. It’s happened all season. I would say it could have been different if it was at the end of season," said Guardiola.
The 2025 FIFA Club World Cup is set to begin on June 14 and continue till July 13.
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Matches Erling Haaland could miss due to ankle injury
While Cityzens will be hoping for his speedy recovery, Haaland is expected to miss the next seven Premier League games of this season.
City are pitted against Manchester United, Crystal Palace, Everton, Aston Villa, Wolves, Southampton, and Bournemouth respectively, over the next weeks.
Haaland will also be unavailable for City's semi-final clash against Nottingham Forest in the FA Cup on April 26. If the reigning Premier League champions qualify for the cup final, the forward might not be ready to feature in that as well.
Haaland has netted 30 goals and provided four assists in 40 appearances for Man City this season.
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