Pep Guardiola is getting almost everything he wanted from Man City stars during international break

What must Pep Guardiola have felt when he got the news that Erling Haaland was withdrawing from the Norway squad without kicking a ball?

Haaland couldn't shake off a groin issue from Manchester City's win over Burnley, it got worse, and tests confirmed he wouldn't be able to play for Norway against Spain and Scotland this week. His dad Alfie has since confirmed that Haaland has gone to City's partner hospital in Barcelona for further check-ups.

Guardiola's last message to his players was a simple one: don't get injured, and look after yourselves. It seems Haaland already was injured, but nonetheless it was the nightmare start to an international break for Guardiola. Since then, things have looked up.

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If Haaland's injury threatened to set the tone for the international fixtures from a City perspective, then so far it has actually been an outlier. Fringe players have got useful minutes, regulars have put in good performances, and everyone appears relatively happy.

Four of City's five England players featured in their win over Italy, including Kalvin Phillips getting a rare 90 minutes - only his second of the season. Phillips needs minutes wherever they come, so to get the nod in such a big game will do wonders for his confidence. In his last seven fixtures for club and country, he's played five times and amassed more minutes than the rest of the season combined, from a possible 27 games before that (plus a further 17 when he was injured).

All of Guardiola's centre-backs have started for their countries, including Aymeric Laporte, who has been finding starts for City hard to come by, especially in the more important games. Likewise,