Erling Haaland missed Manchester City’s win over Luton Town due to a foot injury. After the match, Pep Guardiola confirmed that Haaland was suffering from a strain in the ankle bone, he denied rumors of a broken bone.
The Spanish manager added that Haaland will return for City’s match against Crystal Palace or later during the team’s Club World Cup campaign in Saudi Arabia. Anyway, Pep Guardiola is a bit uncertain about the Norwegian player’s return date against Crystal Palace. That naturally means Haaland will almost miss two matches.
Information about Haaland’s injury may be good news for Cristiano Ronaldo in the near future. At the age of 38, Ronaldo still competes closely with Erling Haaland to become this year’s top scorer. Haaland’s injury gives Ronaldo an advantage. With his competitor nursing an injury, the Portuguese superstar once again aims to get back to the top! Let’s dive deeper into the details of the scoring race below.
The last time Cristiano Ronaldo became the top scorer in a calendar year was in 2015, when he was still with Real Madrid with 57 goals. In the years that followed, Ronaldo lost to the likes of Lionel Messi and Robert Lewandowski, to name a few. However, this year Ronaldo is close to regaining the “crown”. So far, the 38-year-old has scored 49 goals in 2023 and Erling Haaland is only ahead of Ronaldo with 50 goals. Haaland’s Manchester City has 5 more matches this year. However, “ma bu” will probably miss at least 2 of those matches.
Furthermore, Haaland is said to have suffered an injury during the international break and was subjective about it, making the injury worse. Therefore, the possibility of a quick recovery cannot be ruled out.
Meanwhile, Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al Nassr has 4 more matches this year. Currently, Ronaldo will almost certainly play in all four remaining matches for the Saudi Arabian club. Therefore, it can be certain that Ronaldo has more chances than Haaland in the top scorer race.