Man City vs Liverpool team news: Haaland not in squad against Reds in major boost to Klopp and Arteta

Erling Haaland has not been named in the squad for Manchester City's Premier League clash with Liverpool.

Speaking in his pre-match press conference, City boss Guardiola admitted Haaland would be assessed following Friday afternoon's training session.

The striker withdrew from international duty with Norway after suffering groin pain following City's FA Cup quarter-final win over Burnley.

And having been assessed the striker, who has scored 28 goals in 26 Premier League appearances for City so far this season, will not feature in the clash against Jurgen Klopp's men.

Speaking on Haaland's fitness, Guardiola said on Friday: “Erling is recovering; last training session and we will see how he feels.”

Pushed on how far away Haaland was from a return, the Spaniard added: “We will see this afternoon.”

The striker, who signed from Borussia Dortmund over the summer, has been a revelation this term. Indeed, he is two goals away from matching Ruud van Nistelrooy (2002-03) and Mohamed Salah's (2017-18) record tally of 44 goals in all competitions for a Premier League club.

His absence will not only be a massive boost for Klopp but also for Mikel Arteta's Arsenal, who are eight point clear of City at the top of the table.

Liverpool vs Man City team news

Haaland’s absence means Julian Alvarez will lead the line for City.

Elsewhere John Stones and Nathan Ake start at full-back while Kevin de Bruyne comes in having been benched for City’s last Premier League game over Crystal Palace on March 11.

For Liverpool, Diogo Jota gets the nod to lead the line ahead of Darwin Nunez. The Portugal international will be flanked by Mohamed Salah and Cody Gakpo.

In midfield, Jordan Henderson returns having been benched for Liverpool’s last Premier League game. He'll be joined in the middle by Harvey Elliott and Fabinho.

The back four is as expected, with Ibrahima Konate again preferred to Joel Matip. Luis Diaz, who is recovering from a six month injury lay off, is still not fit enough to feature in the squad.

Man City vs Liverpool teams in full

Man City: Ederson, Stones, Akanji, Dias, Ake, Rodri, Gundogan, De Bruyne, Grealish, Mahrez, Alvarez... Subs: Ortega, Walker, Phillips, Laporte, Silva, Gomez, Perrone, Palmer, Lewis.

Liverpool: Alisson, Alexander-Arnold, Konate, Van Dijk, Robertson, Fabinho, Henderson, Elliott, Gakpo, Jota, Salah... Subs: Kelleher, Gomez, Milner, Firmino, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Tsimikas, Nunez, Arthur, Matip.

Topics: Erling Haaland, Manchester City, Liverpool, Pep Guardiola, Arsenal

Chris Byfield

Sport journalist with experience writing on football, rugby, boxing and the Olympics. I'm also a Crystal Palace fan. Please don't hold this against me.