Pep Guardiola said he decided to take Erling Haaland off at half-time in Manchester City’s3-1 win over Leicester to prevent the striker picking up an injury.
The striker netted a penalty before scoring his 47th goal of the season to put his side three goals to the good after John Stones crashed home the opener.
Both goalscorers were replaced at the interval. Kevin de Bruyne, Rodri and Jack Grealish were all substituted in the second half while Ilkay Gundogan and Nathan Ake remained on the bench with Bayern Munich in mind in the Champions League on Wednesday. READ MORE: City player ratings vs Leicester And, speaking to the BBC after the game, Guardiola detailed why he ended Haaland’s game early. "We made subs to make players rest but we lost some control, though in general it was a deserved victory,” he said. "We start the game to win the game.
The game is never done until it's done. "But after 3-0, and especially with the control and Erling Haaland played all 90 minutes against Bayern Munich and it was so difficult, we have to think about injuries.