Man City manager Pep Guardiola has confirmed that Erling Haaland will be “ready” to face Burnley this weekend.

The Norwegian international was substituted against Arsenal last Sunday after picking up a back injury.

Haaland was subsequently left out of the matchday squad for the 2-0 win over Huddersfield Town in the Carabao Cup; a game he would not have started anyway.

Even so, there were concerns about his fitness, but Guardiola has now allayed those fears ahead of the clash against Burnley.

Another Man City player is closing in on his return to match fitness

In his pre-match press conference on Friday, Guardiola also provided an update on five other players who have been sidelined with injuries.

While four are not expected to be available, Guardiola did say that Mateo Kovacic has a decent chance of being involved in upcoming fixtures:

“(Rayan) Ait-Nouri, no. (Rayan) Cherki, no. (Abdukodir) Khusanov, no. (Omar) Marmoush, no. And (Mateo) Kova, maybe.”

Kovacic has not played so far this campaign, having undergone surgery on his Achilles at the start of June, prior to the Club World Cup. However, he has been pictured in training over the past few days. If he isn’t named on the bench for the Burnley match, he may feature in the Champions League group fixture against Monaco on Wednesday.

Cherki is still on the treatment table

Reports in the French media have suggested that Rayan Cherki could make his comeback from a thigh injury several weeks earlier than expected.

Guardiola was quick to play down the chances of the attacking midfielder being in contention for Burnley, and other sources close to the club have also claimed that the Everton fixture after the next international break is the most realistic return date for the player.

Read more about the Man City First Team Squad for 2025/26 here