Erling Haaland will be available for selection against Liverpool

Manchester City fans all around the world feared for the worst when they saw Erling Haaland leave Norway’s friendly match against the Faroe islands with an ankle injury. Those fans can now let out a giant sigh of relief. ESPN has just reported that Erling Haaland is fit to play and will feature in the Manchester City vs. Liverpool match this Saturday.

Haaland has scored 13 goals for Man City in just 12 matches. His availability greatly increases Pep Guardiola’s side’s odds against Liverpool in this weekend’s marquee match.

Haaland fit and ready for Liverpool

Erling Haaland injured his ankle against the Faroe Islands while on international duty with Norway last Thursday. The towering striker had been carrying an ankle injury going into that match, which caused many to criticise Norway manager Ståle Solbakken’s decision to play Haaland in a meaningless friendly against such a small nation like the Faroe Islands. Haaland also received criticism for not pulling himself out of the squad.

After getting injured, Haaland vowed to try and get back “as soon as possible.” As reassuring as these comments from Haaland were, it led many to speculate he would be out for a while. We now know, thanks to reporting from ESPN, that Haaland will not even miss a single match for Man City due to his ankle injury.

Haaland has reportedly returned to training and is fully fit. Barring some last-minute change to his injury status, or some big-brained tactical tweak by Pep Guardiola, Haaland will play for Man City against Liverpool on Saturday.

Other Man City injuries

Unfortunately for Man City fans, Erling Haaland is not the only one of Pep Guardiola’s men suffering from injuries. Man City talisman Kevin De Bruyne is still out with a long-term injury. Versatile defender and midfielder John Stones is also out with a long-term injury of his own.

Like Haaland, City goalkeeper Ederson and defender Nathan Ake had to pull out of international duty early with injuries. Both players should be available for Manchester City vs. Liverpool though. Mateo Kovacic will not be able to join. The Croatian midfielder is reportedly out for another couple of weeks.

Manchester City vs. Liverpool prediction

According to the betting sites, Manchester City are big favourites against Liverpool.

The Cityzens thrashed Liverpool 4-1 at home just seven months ago in the 2022/23 Premier League season. Liverpool have not beaten City at home since the 2022 FA Cup. You have to go back several years to find a Liverpool victory away at City in the league. Despite all this being true, these two sides are as close as they have ever been.

A Man City win is probably the most likely result in this one, but we wouldn’t put it past Liverpool to get a good result at the Etihad.

Because it’s so hard to predict our best bet in this match is for both teams to score. The chances of this betting hitting are even greater now that we know Haaland will play.