Erling Haaland "can't play" for Manchester City in Wednesday's EFL Cup last-16 tie away against Tottenham Hotspur, Citizens expert Steven McInerney from Esteemed Kompany has told Sports Mole.
The Norwegian striker has once again been at his clinical best for Pep Guardiola's side so far this season, scoring an impressive 14 goals in just 13 appearances across all competitions.
Haaland netted his 11th Premier League goal of the campaign in a slender 1-0 home victory over Southampton last weekend, taking his overall goal tally for Man City to a remarkable 104 in 111 matches since he joined the club in July 2022.
After Man City opted against signing a replacement for Julian Alvarez in the summer, Haaland is the only recognised centre-forward available to Guardiola, who will weigh up whether to select his No.9 against Spurs or give him a valuable rest.
Amidst Man City's hectic fixture schedule in multiple competitions, Guardiola has admitted that he will not 'waste energy' on the EFL Cup this season and will prioritise both the Premier League and Champions League.
The Catalan coach could therefore look to rest a number of first-team stars including Haaland - who travelled to Sweden to watch Malmo's clash with Goteborg on Tuesday - while McInerney has also suggested that several academy youngsters, including 16-year-old Kaden Braithwaite, Nico O'Reilly and James McAtee could be called upon, with Man City currently coping without six injured senior players.
While newly-crowned Ballon d'Or winner Rodri and Oscar Bobb are long-term absentees, Kevin De Bruyne, Kyle Walker, Jack Grealish and Jeremy Doku are also sidelined and will not be involved on Wednesday.
Guardiola could be "brutal" with changes as academy stars push for involvement
Speaking to Sports Mole, McInerney said: "I'm not confident about this game because I think Pep has no choice whatsoever but to be quite brutal with the changes. We just do not have the players. We do not have the players to risk more injuries.
"Guardiola said after the game (against Southampton) that he'll ask the players how they're feeling. If anyone's got even the slightest of doubts, they're just not going to play.
"I think Spurs will be more than up for this. I feel like they'll have a bit more strength in depth because the injuries aren't quite as brutal as City's right now.
"I reckon City are going to play a couple of kids. Kaden Braithwaite played in the last round (a 2-1 win over Watford in September). He's only a young lad. I expect he'll play. I think McAtee will play. Nico O'Reilly might get a start as well. Maybe we'll see Jacob Wright being involved.
"Who knows? Guardiola might just go stronger. It wouldn't be the first time he's done that where he plays a couple of players who have played recently. For example, Phil Foden is still finding his rhythm. He's the kind of guy I can imagine would play this game as well.
"Rico Lewis might play... we haven't got a right back with Kyle Walker [injured]. [John] Stones, [Ilkay] Gundogan, [Nathan] Ake, [Stefan] Ortega, O'Reilly and McAtee. They're probably going to start, so there's six people, add Foden to that, add Kaden Braithwaite to that.
"[Josko] Gvardiol won't play. Haaland can't play. He just can't play, so I don't know what we're going to do there. McAtee as a false nine maybe?
"I'd be amazed if Haaland starts this game because he was absolutely spent at the end of the Southampton game. He was breathing heavily... we haven't even got many strikers in the academy side as well, so we'll see how it goes. I'm not feeling particularly confident right now."
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McInerney predicts much-changed City to "crash out" against Spurs
McInerney has admitted that a much-changed City side could "crash out" of the EFL Cup in midweek and has explained why he is "not confident" ahead of their encounter with Ange Postecoglou's Spurs.
"I'm not confident going into this. I feel like there's going to be a lot more momentum for Spurs than for Man City," said McInerney.
"Spurs have got a lot of obvious ways to switch up their team. Richarlison, Timo Werner, [Pape Matar] Sarr, [Rodrigo] Bentancur, [Radu] Dragusin, Archie Gray and people like that (could all come in). One or two of those will play because their fixture schedule isn't quite as heavy as City's.
"I feel like we could crash out here and it could be that Spurs go for it. I wouldn't be surprised if Spurs see it as a chance to go far in this competition, given that they could knock City out, who are one of the favourites. City will make a lot of changes and Spurs don't play until Sunday against Aston Villa, whereas City play on Saturday.
"I think it's going to be a much-changed team for City. I'm expecting to go out if I'm being honest. I just don't want a sort of battering. I don't think it will be, but I wouldn't be surprised if City go out 2-1."
After losing their first five visits without scoring at the new Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, Man City have since won their last two away trips to Spurs, with a narrow 1-0 FA Cup fourth-round victory in January, followed by a 2-0 Premier League success in May, courtesy of two goals from Haaland.
While Guardiola's side are yet to lose in any competition so far this season, Spurs enter Wednesday's contest on the back of losing 1-0 at Crystal Palace in the Premier League last weekend.
> Click here to read McInerney's views on why Spurs should target EFL Cup glory this season
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