Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has confirmed that Erling Haaland is set to return to training on Thursday having made progress in his recovery from a foot injury.
Haaland was forced to miss City's 2-1 win at Luton Town in the Premier League last Sunday due to a "bone stress reaction" in his foot, according to Guardiola.
The Norwegian has not travelled with the Citizens squad to Serbia for Wednesday's dead-rubber Champions League clash against Red Star Belgrade, and Guardiola had initially suggested that the striker may not recover in time to face Crystal Palace in the Premier League on Saturday.
There have even been reports stating that Man City could enter the January transfer market to recruit a new striker if Haaland's injury worsens.
However, Guardiola has since delivered a positive update on Haaland's fitness, although he cannot be certain if Man City's No.9 will feature in some capacity against Palace.
© Reuters
Asked at a press conference on Tuesday evening whether Haaland has taken part in training since the victory at Luton, Guardiola said: "No. He'll be back I think Thursday. We'll see how he feels."
The Citizens boss intends to provide another update on Haaland at the next press conference on Friday, adding: "I don't know [if he will play against Palace] right now. Next press conference I could be more precise about his conditions."
Should Haaland not recover in time to face Palace, the striker could be in a position to return to action for Man City's semi-final clash in the Club World Cup in Saudi Arabia next week.
Guardiola was also asked once again about the absence of star playmaker Kevin De Bruyne, who has been sidelined since August with a hamstring injury and is targeting a return in the New Year.
The Catalan boss does not believe that De Bruyne's absence has had an impact on City's season, with his side sitting four points off the Premier League summit and safety through to the last 16 of the Champions League as Group G winners with a game to spare.
© Reuters
"Of course I'd prefer Kevin is with us," said Guardiola. "Of course we need him. You have to handle the situation with the players we have.
"I've said many times, when we have stable positions with players like last season, the cover with the players you mention.
"Of course, the word isn't miss something but change something and you need time to adapt. But I have the feeling so far is good, we don't drop too much.
"But we have standards, we lost one game in six or seven so it's a big disaster. The others we draw but perform really well."
As well as Haaland and De Bruyne, Man City will be without Jeremy Doku (muscle) for the trip to Red Star where the Champions League holders will endeavour to become just the second English team after Liverpool (2021-22) to win all six group-stage games in the same season.
No Data Analysis info
Germany
Switzerland
Hungary
Scotland
Spain
Italy
Croatia
Albania
England
Denmark
Slovenia
Serbia
Austria
France
Netherlands
Poland
Romania
Belgium
Slovakia
Ukraine
Portugal
Turkey
Georgia
Czech Republic