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Erling Haaland’s mixed afternoon at Bournemouth in the FA Cup quarter-finals on March 30 ended in painful style when the Manchester City top scorer had to be substituted during the second half.
Norway talisman Haaland missed two presentable chances and had a penalty saved early in the tie, only to score City’s equaliser in their 2-1 win before taking a tumble off the pitch at speed while competing for the ball with Cherries defender Lewis Cook in the 56th minute.
The 24-year-old returned to his feet but could not continue and was replaced by Omar Marmoush, who struck the deciding goal in the 69th minute.
City released an update on March 31 and manager Pep Guardiola discussed Haaland the following day. Here’s what we know about the two-time Premier League top scorer’s absence.
This could be a huge loss for Manchester City…
The moment Haaland was injured 🤕#ITVFootball | #FACup pic.twitter.com/gdeMK3X04z
— ITV Football (@itvfootball) March 30, 2025
How long is Erling Haaland out for?
“The expectation is that Erling will be fit in time to play a further part in the remainder of this season, including this summer’s Fifa Club World Cup,” City said, with Guardiola adding that doctors had told him Haaland would be out for between five to seven weeks.
City face a busy run-in as they attempt to achieve European qualification, with their final fixture scheduled to be at Fulham on May 25 (16:00 BST).
“We don’t have another player with Erling Haaland’s skills or his specific qualities – we know that,” said Guardiola. “But we have to adapt.
“For many years we’ve played in different ways up front, and it depends on the quality of the players. We will find a solution from the players that we have. They all have different skills and qualities. We will have another [striker].”
“Doctors told me five to seven weeks”
Pep Guardiola gives an update on Erling Haaland’s injury. pic.twitter.com/2jFqtF6Co8
— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) April 1, 2025
What is Haaland’s injury?
The Cityzens confirmed that Haaland has damaged his left ankle and said he had initial tests in Manchester on the morning of March 31.
They said Haaland would “seek specialist consultation” to decide the “full extent” of the issue. “Everyone at the club wishes Erling a speedy recovery,” City added.
Analysing Haaland’s fall on ITV Football, former England defender Lee Dixon worried that a harder surface beyond the sideline may have compounded the problem.
“You just watch him fall onto that side of the pitch,” said Dixon. “I’ve always wondered why they don’t push the grass a little bit further off the side of the pitch, because you can go from grass to astroturf really quickly.”
Erling Haaland is coming off injured… 🔄#ITVFootball | #FACup pic.twitter.com/8RQmq46RiE
— ITV Football (@itvfootball) March 30, 2025
How many games will Haaland miss? Man City fixtures
Haaland had started 28 of City’s first 29 league games of the season – sitting out their 2-0 defeat at Liverpool on February 23 through a knee injury – but is now certain to add to that total.
The timescale Guardiola reported would see Haaland potentially miss between seven and 11 games, assuming he is fit to play immediately after his injury.
Here’s how City’s fixture list looked after they beat Bournemouth. All matches are in the Premier League and start at 15:00 unless otherwise stated, although they are subject to rescheduling.
Leicester City (H) – Wednesday, April 2 (19:45)Man United (A) – Sunday, April 6 (16:30)Crystal Palace (H) – Saturday, April 12 (12:30)Everton (A) – Saturday, April 19Forest (FA Cup semi-final, Wembley Stadium) – Saturday, April 26Aston Villa (H) – Monday, April 28 (20:00, postponed because of FA Cup, new date and time TBA)Wolves (H) – Friday, May 2 (20:00)Southampton (A) – Saturday, May 10FA Cup Final (Wembley) – Saturday, May 17Bournemouth (H) – Sunday, May 18 (subject to postponement if City reach the FA Cup final)Fulham (A) – Sunday, May 25 (16:00)
When is Erling Haaland back?
A five-week lay-off would make Haaland’s earliest possible return away to relegation certainties Southampton on May 10.
Should his comeback take seven weeks, the earliest he could feature is at Bournemouth in City’s closing home game or in the FA Cup final on May 17, when they will play Crystal Palace or Aston Villa if they beat Nottingham Forest in the semi-finals.
City’s update emphasised their hope that Haaland will return by the time of the Club World Cup, which offers prize money of around £97 million for the winners in an already-lucrative spectacle for its participants.
Their campaign in that competition starts against Moroccan club Wydad AC in Philadelphia on June 18 (17:00).
City’s group stage schedule proceeds to meetings with UAE Pro League team Al Ain in Atlanta on June 22 (02:00) and Italian giants Juventus in Orlando on June 26 (20:00).
Should he be available, Haaland’s involvement could be complicated by two World Cup qualifiers for Norway: they host Italy on June 6 and visit Estonia three days later (both 19:45).
Erling Haaland stats
After finishing as the leading Premier League marksman with 36 goals in 2022/23 and 27 in 2023/24, Haaland looks unlikely to earn a third consecutive Golden Boot, not least because Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah had six more league goals than him at the time of his injury.
With nine league games left for City, his chances of scoring the six goals required to match his previous tally will also fade with each match he misses.
He has still had a hugely prolific season for a team who have surprisingly underperformed for much of 2024/25, with only Barcelona’s Raphinha and Robert Lewandowski, Borussia Dortmund’s Serhou Guirassy and Bayern Munich’s Harry Kane bettering his eight Champions League goals before the quarter-finals.
All four of those forwards have played at least once more than him in this season’s competition because City were knocked out by Real Madrid in the knockout phase play-offs.
Haaland’s goal against Bournemouth was his 30th of the season in all competitions, while he has also provided four assists, including two in three games to help City beat Newcastle and Chelsea earlier this year.
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