Erling Haaland in 'so much pain' – Norway doctor gives injury update on Manchester City star ahead of crunch clash vs Liverpool
The striker suffered a knock in Thursday's friendly against the Faroe Islands, but the 23-year-old went on to finish the match
Manchester City striker Erling Haaland will miss Norway's European Championship qualifier against Scotland on Sunday after picking up an injury in Thursday night's friendly win over the Faroe Islands.
Haaland took a knock in the 2-0 victory and although he was able to complete the match in Oslo, he was been withdrawn from the squad for Sunday's clash at Hampden Park.
"The injury is not serious, but he has so much pain and somewhat limited function that the Scotland game unfortunately comes a little too early," team doctor Ola Sand said in a statement.
Norway cannot finish in the top two, with Spain and Scotland having already sealed automatic qualification, and Romania's win over Israel on Saturday means they will not be able to qualify through the play-offs either.
Despite Haaland's importance to Norway, coach Stale Solbakken had already revealed he would not be calling up another player for Sunday's game in Glasgow.
"It's obviously a shame that Erling won't be ready for the game on Sunday, but we're not going to bring in a replacement," he said.
"This is a great opportunity for the attacking players in the squad."
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City will hope Haaland is fit for next Saturday's Premier League clash at home to Liverpool.
Pep Guardiola's side are currently top of the table after 12 games, one point ahead of the Reds in second place.
Haaland, who scored 52 goals in all competitions last season, has 13 in 12 Premier League appearances this term and 17 in 18 games overall.
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Ben Hayward is a European football writer and Tottenham Hotspur fan with over 15 years’ experience, he has covered games all over the world - including three World Cups, several Champions League finals, Euros, Copa America - and has spent much of that time in Spain. Ben speaks English and Spanish, currently dividing his time between Barcelona and London, covering all the big talking points of the weekend on FFT: he’s also written several list features and interviewed Guglielmo Vicario for the magazine.