Man City injury news: Fresh Erling Haaland, John Stones update from Pep Guardiola before Salford FA Cup tie

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has delivered a fresh update on the fitness of Erling Haaland ahead of Saturday’s FA Cup fourth-round tie against Salford City at the Etihad Stadium.

The Norwegian scored his first non-penalty goal since December 20, ending an unwanted eight-match run, to help the Citizens ease to 3-0 Premier League victory over Fulham on Wednesday night.

However, Haaland did not re-emerge for the second half and Guardiola revealed after the match that the striker had “niggles” and ‘did not feel comfortable’, adding that it was “common sense” to take him off with City leading by three goals.

Man City’s No.9 is undoubtedly an integral first-team figure for Guardiola and has scored a team-high 29 goals across all tournaments this season, a remarkable 19 goals more than his nearest challenger Phil Foden (10).

However, there are questions marks over whether he will feature this weekend or be handed a rest against League Two outfit Salford, before Man City play host to Newcastle United in their next Premier League game on February 21.

Man City vs. Salford: Haaland’s issue is ‘not big’, but he remains a doubt

Speaking at a press conference on Friday about Haaland’s condition, Guardiola said: "Erling is not 100%. We will see today how he feels.

“It is not a big issue the doctor said to me, but he had some disturbance during the game and that's why he didn't play in the second half. We will see today [if he will be involved against Salford]."

Guardiola somewhat surprisingly decided to start Haaland in the third round of the FA Cup last month when Man City thumped Exeter City by a 10-1 scoreline. The striker was then taken off at half time with the score at 4-0 to the Sky Blues.

Haaland is seemingly unlikely to be risked on Saturday, with Omar Marmoush and Antoine Semenyo regarded are two adequate alternatives to lead the line if City’s No.9 is indeed absent, the latter of whom has scored five goals in eight games since arriving from Bournemouth for £64m in January.

Meanwhile, Guardiola has also issued a fresh update on the fitness of defender John Stones, who has returned to team training and was named in the matchday squad in midweek for the first time since December 2.

Stones to be assessed, as four Man City players remain out

Asked about how Stones has coped off the pitch during another injury-plagued season and whether he could feature against Salford, Guardiola said: "Last season too [was a difficult season for him]. Fortunately, it is a long two months. The last game he played was against [Fulham] away.

“He has already made two or three training sessions and we will see tomorrow if he plays or how many minutes he plays."

Stones is one of six central defenders who could be available for selection this weekend, with Ruben Dias recently returning to full fitness to provide competition for new recruit Marc Guehi, Abdukodir Khusanov, Nathan Ake and Max Alleyne.

Josko Gvardiol, however, remains sidelined as he continues to recover from surgery on a tibial fracture, while Croatian compatriot Mateo Kovacic is also ruled out long term, as he is still suffering from calcification in his ankle/heel.

It is unclear when Jeremy Doku (calf) or Savinho (unspecified) will return to first-team action; an appearance against Salford seems unlikely, but there is an expectation that both wingers could be available at some stage towards the end of this month.

Man City, who are bidding to reach the FA Cup fifth round for an 11th year in a row, are regarded as firm favourites to beat Salford, just over a year on from securing an 8-0 victory over the Ammies in the third round of last season’s competition.