Erling Haaland confirms his availability against Southampton on the weekend after a sustained injury duration that dents the Saints' hopes ahead of a St. Mary's tie.
After a miserable week for the group, Southampton return to action hoping to lift spirits at St Mary’s. In matchday 36, it's the Saints hosting Pep Guardiola's Man City side at home.
Now, for the side that has struggled at home all season, facing Man City only piles on the difficult challenge ahead of Southampton. And what better to sum it up than Red Devils icon Paul Scholes predicting a 7-0 thrashing in favour of their Manchester rivals here?
But as if the build-up hadn’t already bruised Southampton’s morale, it's a new update from Manchester that will surely scare them.
Man City receive a massive injury boost with Haaland's return
Southampton’s worst fear has materialised as Erling Haaland is back and ready for St Mary’s. Recently, ahead of the matchday, Haaland announced his return after being sidelined with an ankle injury for around 5 weeks.
As quoted by the Daily Echo, Haaland mentioned: "Now I’m back with loads of energy. I’m feeling good and moving good, and I’m ready.”
Well, this concise message from the Norwegian forward is sure to send shock waves across the entire St. Mary's faithful. After all, despite missing some games and still competing for the Premier League golden boot, Haaland's return only dents whatever Southampton hopes are left.
Still, as ex-Man City prodigy Taylor Harwood-Bellis mentioned, Southampton needs to enter the matchday with a motive if they wish to go past Derby's total.
Surely, Erling Haaland's return is to impact the matchday's result a lot, but chances are that he may not start the fixture.
Now, that's where Southampton can get something to build on. Remember the last time these two sides met, the Saints had been impressive except for an early goal from Haaland himself.
In case Haaland starts from the bench tonight, Southampton have a silver lining of optimism. It's faint for sure, but that's all they have got for now.