Pep Guardiola has been handed his strongest case yet for dropping Man City star Erling Haaland

Erling Haaland is currently the most in-form footballer on the planet.

His whopping 20 goals in just 13 competitive appearances has meant that the Norwegian talisman has become undroppable for Pep Guardiola. It is rare for any player to reach this feat in a Manchester City side in recent years.

Guardiola has this incredible ability to give each player just the right amount of playing time to keep them satisfied. However, such is the 22-year-old's strengths in front of goal, even the gaffer has had to adapt his philosophy to accommodate Haaland.

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It seems unthinkable to imagine a good time to drop the forward but the midweek trip to FC Copenhagen may just be the strongest case yet and the reason why is three-fold. Firstly, with the greatest respect given to the Danes, the quality of opposition must tempt the Catalan man to make a change.

Copenhagen's fans on Wednesday night must be commended as it was surely difficult to carry on their unwavering support considering the onslaught their side were facing. Haaland bagged a brace and was substituted at halftime, his job having already been completed.

We have all been saying that Haaland could well prove to be the difference in the Champions League but, in truth, City really did not need him to secure the three points. Besides, and this is where reason number two comes in, there is already a very handy replacement the Blues can call upon.

Julian Alvarez started last week and showed once again why so many fans have been itching for him to gain more minutes. His pace will be a huge problem for most teams and he deserved his goal when it eventually came.

There is no doubt he could play the sole striker