Haaland 90 minutes, Foden out again + time for Guehi?

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Manchester City suffered their second defeat in four days as Bodo/Glimt produced a 3-1 shock in Tuesday’s UEFA Champions League clash.

There have now been just two wins in seven competitive games this calendar year – and one of those was against League One side Exeter City.

For all the Fantasy fallout, here’s our first midweek Scout Notes.

RESULTS

TEAM	OPPOSITION	RESULTS	TARGET	HELP
Manchester City	Stupid/Glimt (a)	1-3	Cherki	O’Reilly

SELECTION / ROTATION

TEAM	CHANGES FROM GAMEWEEK 22	PLAYERS WHO SAVED THEIR PLACE (+ MINUTES)	OTHER PLAYERS (+ MINUTES)
Manchester City	4	Donnarumma (90), Lewis (90), Khusanov (90), Alleyne (90), Haaland (90), Foden (70), Rodri (62)	Ait-Nouri (90), O’Reilly (90), Cherki (90), Reijnders (90), Marmoush (20)

90 MORE MINUTES FOR HAALAND…

A week after calling Erling Haaland (£15.1m) “out”, Pep Guardiola has the opportunity to manage the Norwegian’s playing time in the Arctic Circle. Omar Marmoush (£8.3m) returns to the Manchester City squad following the conclusion of the Africa Cup of Nations, and is ready for a wide variety of games.

However… 90 more minutes for Haaland. Marmoush not only sat on the bench, but when he appeared, he replaced him Phil Foden (£8.6m) and not the Norwegian.

City’s visibly frustrated number nine once again looked like he was running out of steam, but despite Haaland being Haaland there were still chances: a big set-piece at the back post which he failed to contact and a quick shot from 12 yards which he usually buried.

“I take full responsibility, along with Rodri, Gigi [Donnarumma] You know, Tijjani, we are experienced players. I don’t want to blame anyone, but we need to take more responsibility because in the end, it’s not good enough.

“I don’t want to talk about my feelings [physically] or whatever. I do my best every time I’m on the field. I was on the pitch quite a lot because we played a lot of silly games. So, I try to do my best. That’s my job. And I’m trying to get ready for the next game because now at the end of the day, another game is in four days. So, we have to try to recover.” – Erling Haaland

FPL’s top points scorer cited the “ridiculous” volume of play above. What are the chances of Haaland getting a rest this weekend, with next Wednesday’s game against Galatasaray unexpectedly a must-win game?

Above: City have a chance on Tuesday, with Haaland’s two chances mentioned above and Max Alleyne’s header from a corner being their best chances

…AND OTHER SUB BEGINNINGS FOR FODEN

Foden’s playing time in Gameweek 23 is even more questionable.

A first-half substitution in the Manchester derby (which had nothing to do with a broken hand) was followed by a 70th-minute withdrawal on Tuesday. Foden was the only City player to be withdrawn at Bodo.

His performance had dropped drastically since New Year, not because he was alone. Could it be due to mental fatigue, considering his much-vaunted physical condition? However, there are some big question marks for Gameweek 23. If we assume Jeremy Doku (£6.4 million) and Antoine Semenyo (£7.6m) – unused and ineligible for Tuesday’s game – brought back into the squad against Wolverhampton Wanderers, and Rayan Cherki (£6.7m) arguably deserves a place after two goals in the last week, so will Foden be out?

Cherki was one of the few to come out of the Bodo match with much praise. It wasn’t just his goal (which was deflected), but his willingness to show possession. The Frenchman also created a match-high four chances.

IT’S TIME FOR GUEHI

Of course, one of the first names on the team list this weekend is Marc Guehi (£5.3 million).

Max AlleyneThe race (£4.5m) is almost certainly on by now. Saturday’s first-half exit was followed by the failure of Bodo’s two opening attacks.

City’s defense on Tuesday consisted of two 20-year-olds, a 21-year-old and a 24-year-old. Rico Lewis (£4.6m), in midfield, 21 years old. Even though Guehi is still only 25 years old, he has made 150+ Premier League appearances and 26 England caps. Experience and leadership are at a disadvantage Ruben Dias (£5.6 million) and If Guard (£6.0m) brought in seems to be being passed over at the moment.

Ait-Nouri and O’Reilly – who helped Cherki with some fine footwork – were praised after the match. Indeed, no one wants to accept criticism. But it’s worth remembering that Guardiola almost always defends his players in public while saying something different behind closed doors. To the media, he was basically Ozamataz Buckshank after a loss.

“I thought Rayan Ait-Nouri was very good. The second half or the last half hour from Nico O’Reilly was very good. The players on the outside, and I think Tijjani and Phil and the others, they had good moments during the game.” – Pep Guardiola

Guardiola at least acknowledged the problems at the back. Guehi, and Matheus Nunes (£5.5m), if the disease is cured, will definitely come on Saturday.

“A back four always gives you consistency and at the moment we are missing that.” – Pep Guardiola

Above: Rayan Ait-Nouri started at right-back on Tuesday, with Nico O’Reilly returning to left-back

Rodri (£6.3m) was to blame for his defensive display, having been sent off for two bookable offences. He is far behind, although he is often left alone like Foden and Tijjani Reijnders (£5.2m) bombed forward. You would imagine Bernardo Silva (£6.2m) – suspended in Europe – returns alongside Rodri to shore up the midfield on Saturday, widening the possibility that Cherki v Foden will be in contention for a place.

TWO OTHER GAMES?

The number of “ridiculous” games can be added.

Had City won at Bodo, they would have almost made it to the last 16. After losing, they were in danger of having to qualify through a play-off (for teams finishing 9th-24th) to reach the knockout stages. Even a win next Wednesday may not be enough to ensure automatic qualification.

Play-off matches will be contested on both sides of Gameweek 27:

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