Erling Haaland limped toward the tunnel late in Manchester City's 3-2 Premier League win over Ipswich Town at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday, sparking an injury scare just moments after he had made history. The striker scored once in each half before appearing to suffer a problem following a challenge involving Ipswich substitute Jack Clarke.
Ipswich did not go quietly. Zian Flemming converted a late penalty to pull the score back to 3-2, forcing City to see out a nervy finish. Haaland was already making his way off the pitch before the final whistle and headed straight down the tunnel once the match ended.
Before the scare, Haaland had reached 100 non-penalty Premier League goals in just 139 appearances, the fastest any player has ever hit that mark.
Maresca's one-word update
Speaking after the match, manager Enzo Maresca said Haaland had told him he was "OK," an encouraging initial response given how the striker had limped off. Maresca was still cautious, saying he did not yet have firm news and that the club would need to see how Haaland recovered.
Haaland was not the only concern. Maresca said four or five City players had picked up problems within roughly 10 minutes of each other, naming Matheus Nunes, Mateo Kovačić, Haaland, Antoine Semenyo and Nico O'Reilly. O'Reilly was already managing a back issue that first appeared during the warm-up before the Coventry match. Semenyo's injury required the most immediate attention, and City later confirmed he had suffered a knee injury that could keep him out for up to eight weeks.
Foot-and-ankle knock confirmed, then a missed start
By Oct. 19, Maresca said Haaland was dealing with a foot-and-ankle knock but had looked better during recovery work. He was then left out of City's starting lineup for the Champions League match against AEK Athens on Oct. 20, a decision that followed directly from the problem he picked up against Ipswich. Maresca had said before that game that Haaland was improving but still needed to be assessed, and had also spoken about managing the striker's workload through a demanding run of fixtures.
Why the scare matters
Haaland leads the Premier League with eight goals this season, three clear of his nearest challengers, João Pedro and Alexander Isak. City have won all seven of their league matches under Maresca and, after Arsenal beat Nottingham Forest on Oct. 18, hold a three-point lead over their closest rival.
The strong start has come against a backdrop of off-field uncertainty. On Sept. 29, an independent commission found Manchester City guilty of serious breaches of Premier League financial rules. The club disputes the findings and has appealed.
