Omar Marmoush Set to Lead Manchester City Attack as Haaland Faces Long Layoff
Manchester City director Pep Guardiola is preparing to place Omar Marmoush at the heart of the club’s attack after star striker Erling Haaland suffered an ankle injury anticipated to sideline him for over seven weeks.
City are presently fifth in the Premier League table, battling to secure a top-four finish and Champions League qualification.
This week’s pivotal institutions against Leicester City and Manchester United will now be without Haaland, who sustained the injury during City’s 2- 1 FA Cup quarter-final palm over Bournemouth on Sunday.
Haaland had just scored his 30th goal of the season when he collided with Bournemouth midfielder Lewis Cook. Marmoush replaced him in the 61st nanosecond and incontinently made his mark, netting the winner from a Nico O’Reilly film that beat Kepa Arrizabalaga.
Haaland, 24, was latterly seen leaving the Vitality Stadium on pillars with his ankle in a defensive charge. original tests have been conducted, and he’ll now consult a specialist to determine the full extent of the injury.
“They told me the doctors say between five to seven weeks,” Guardiola confirmed. “So hopefully by the end of the season and by the Club World Cup, he will be ready. Sometimes there are years when these kinds of things happen. It happened all season.”
City still face Crystal Palace at home and a trip to Everton before their FA Cup semi-final against Nottingham Forest at Wembley on 26 April. Should Haaland miss the full seven weeks, his participation in the FA Cup final on 17 May would be in serious doubt.
Guardiola’s tactical ingenuity will be tested in Haaland’s absence. Marmoush, the Egyptian forward, could be moved into a more central attacking role or deployed as a ‘false 9’, a strategy the Spaniard has used successfully before.
Guardiola has previously adapted striker-less systems to compensate for key absences, as seen during the 2020/21 campaign when Kevin de Bruyne, Ilkay Gundogan, and Bernardo Silva rotated in the central role following Sergio Aguero’s injury.
This season, still, the stakes are high. Securing at least fourth place in the Premier League remains City’s priority, as missing out on titleholders League football would be a major reversal.
Marmoush, 26, is familiar with leading the line but is best known for his explosive pace and intelligent off-the-ball movement from wide positions.
While he can not replicate Haaland’s murderous finishing entirely, he has made a notable impact since his €70 million transfer from Eintracht Frankfurt in January.
He has scored five pretensions in 11 appearances for City and contributed 20 pretensions during his time in Germany.
Across Europe’s top five leagues, Marmoush’s 29 league appearances, 19 pretensions, and nine assists rank second only to Mohamed Salah.
His Premier League chapeau trick against Newcastle United, completed in just 14 twinkles, demonstrates his capacity to impact games at the loftiest position.
With Erling Haaland out, all eyes will now be on Marmoush to drive City’s attack through a challenging period.
