Erling Haaland remains an injury doubt for Manchester City this week, after being withdrawn early during Norway’s 2-1 Nations League defeat by Portugal on Sunday, despite head coach Stale Solbakken’s attempts to ease concern over the forward’s fitness.
Haaland asked to come off while the match was still level, gesturing towards the Norway bench before he was replaced by Jorgen Strand Larsen in the 67th minute.
He appeared to favour one leg as he made his way off, though he avoided the tunnel and instead took a seat among his team-mates on the substitutes’ bench rather than heading straight for a medical assessment.
That decision not to leave the dugout entirely will offer City some reassurance, but the club’s medical staff are now expected to run their own checks on the Norwegian before his return to Manchester, with the Cityzens facing a demanding run of fixtures in the weeks ahead.
Solbakken insists withdrawal was planned
Speaking to reporters after the final whistle, Solbakken moved quickly to play down any suggestion that Haaland’s withdrawal pointed to a fresh injury. He explained that it had been agreed with several members of his squad before kick-off because of their heavy recent workloads.
“Well, it wasn’t just with him; I spoke with about five or six players who have played a lot of minutes,” he said.
“It’s important that they feel I’m listening to them, and we agreed that he would keep going until he felt he couldn’t contribute anymore. We were talking about the 60-minute mark or thereabouts,” Solbakken added, according to the source.
The Norway manager’s account suggests the substitution was as much about managing fatigue across a squad drawn largely from Europe’s top leagues as it was a response to any specific knock, with Haaland having made it past the hour mark before signalling to the bench.
Maresca faces fresh selection headache
The uncertainty lands at an awkward moment for Enzo Maresca, who took charge at the Etihad Stadium this summer and has had little time to settle before being confronted with questions over the fitness of his most important forward.
Having built City’s attacking plans heavily around Haaland since replacing Pep Guardiola, the Italian head coach will be watching the medical updates from Manchester closely before finalising his squad and starting line-up for the club’s return to Premier League action.
Any period on the sidelines for the Norwegian would represent a significant blow to Maresca’s early tenure, given City’s reliance on their talismanic striker’s goal output since his arrival from Borussia Dortmund.
The new head coach has previously stressed the importance of squad depth and careful management of players returning from international duty, a philosophy that will now be tested in real time.
City have not yet issued their own statement on Haaland’s condition, with the club’s medical team expected to carry out a full assessment once the squad reconvenes at the training ground.
Until that process is complete, the exact nature of any problem — whether fatigue-related, as Solbakken’s comments imply, or something more serious — remains unclear.
