Erling Haaland limped heavily in the closing stages of Manchester City’s 3-2 win over Ipswich on Saturday and went straight down the tunnel after the final whistle, but manager Enzo Maresca said the striker told him he was “OK.”
Haaland’s brace took him to eight Premier League goals this season. He reached 100 non-penalty Premier League goals in 139 appearances, the fastest any player has achieved that mark, per ESPN.
What Maresca Said
Maresca told reporters in his post-match news conference that Haaland assured him he was fine. “I asked all of them. Mateo said he was OK, Matheus said he was OK, Erling also said that he was OK,” Maresca said, per USA Today.
When asked if Haaland had a knee injury, Maresca did not confirm a diagnosis. “I don’t know, I asked him and he said he was OK so hopefully it is nothing serious,” he said.
Haaland was one of several City players who ended the match with injury concerns. Maresca also flagged Mateo Kovacic, Matheus Nunes, Antoine Semenyo and Nico O’Reilly. “Unfortunately in 10 minutes we had four or five players … Matheus, Kova, Erling, Antoine and Nico also … they are inside now but we will see, I don’t know, I don’t have any news at the moment,” Maresca said.
Other Injury Concerns
Nico O’Reilly carries a back problem that first appeared in the warmup before City’s match against Coventry. Maresca said O’Reilly “still has the same problem in his back that (he suffered) in the warm-up against Coventry.” Semenyo is the player City needs to “wait a little bit” on for further clarity, per Maresca.
Season Context
Haaland’s brace against Ipswich extended a prolific scoring run. His eight Premier League goals this season have made him City’s primary attacker under manager Enzo Maresca.
The win over Ipswich was City’s second straight league victory and their seventh consecutive victory to start the season. According to Yahoo Sports, it is City’s first unbeaten start of seven league games in 129 years, last achieved in the 1897-98 season in the second tier. The result put City six points clear of defending champions Arsenal at the top of the table.
What’s Next
City face AEK Athens in the Champions League on Tuesday, Oct. 20. Whether Haaland will be available for that match remains unclear. Maresca said he had no new information on his condition at the time of his post-match news conference, and further updates on Haaland and the other injured players are expected before the midweek trip.
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