Pep Guardiola was stunned into silence by Jamie Carragher’s suggestion that Erling Haaland missed Manchester City’s defeat at Real Madrid because he did not want to face Antonio Rüdiger. The Norwegian was an unused substitute in Spain after telling Guardiola he was unfit to take any part because of a knee injury suffered against Newcastle.
Haaland is a doubt for Sunday’s home game against Carragher’s former club Liverpool. Carragher said on CBS’s Champions League coverage on Wednesday that the striker might be suffering from “Rüdiger-itis” and that is why he told Guardiola he was not available for selection.
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When it was put to the City head coach that Haaland did not want to play, Guardiola responded, after a long pause: “Oh, God. Did he say that? Jamie Carragher said that? Oh God. Don’t laugh. I don’t know why he makes that suspicious, you know that? Did he say that Haaland didn’t want to play the game? It’s not nice – and it’s not true. He was crazy to play the game. He had a problem with his knee and he could not play.”
Guardiola will be without the centre-backs John Stones and Manuel Akanji for Liverpool’s visit and will have to wait on Haaland’s fitness. Both defenders are likely to be out for up to three months after being injured in Madrid.
City’s Champions League exit allows them to focus on domestic matters and securing a place at Europe’s top table next season. They are 17 points behind Liverpool, the leaders, and long ago gave up the prospect of a fifth straight title.
Asked if finishing in the top four would be a proud achievement, Guardiola said: “Unbelievable. Wow. We go to dinner, you and me. I invite you. You choose the restaurant, I pay, 100% for sure, it will be a big achievement. It’s true.
“The last seasons we also had problems but always we were able to find solutions. But this amount of the problems that we have, you know I could not handle it. But still we have three months ahead of us and the target is to qualify for the Champions League for next season, to be there. Not to be in the draw like today, it happened. We were not there. We have to fight to be there. Of course we are going to try. It would be a big success.”
