Why Phil Foden and Erling Haaland missing Man City vs Liverpool FC wouldn't have to be such a huge blow

Manchester City welcome Liverpool to the Etihad Stadium on Saturday for a lunchtime kick-off.

While the Merseyside club are welcoming back a number of players from long-term injuries, including dangerous winger Luis Diaz, City may be forced to play without a couple of key figures. Phil Foden will definitely not be involved at the weekend, while star striker Erling Haaland is also a doubt to make the starting line-up.

City have such a strong squad that even players like Foden and Haaland can be replaced by top-quality stars. Jack Grealish or Bernardo Silva can cover Foden were Pep Guardiola planning on playing him on the left of a front-three, while the likes of Ilkay Gundogan could slot into the team in place of the young English midfielder if the plan was to play him in midfield.

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Meanwhile, World Cup winner Julian Alvarez has looked bright since arriving at the club and he could lead the line should Haaland miss out. A striker as formidable as Haaland is always going to be a tough man to overtake in the frontline pecking order, and so it’ll be down to Alvarez to build upon the positive glimpses we’ve already seen from him this season if he is given his chance.

Foden has gone under the radar this campaign, mainly because of the headline-grabbing Norwegian striker he tends to play alongside. That being said, the England international has still managed to score 13 goals across all competitions, along with six assists.

Gundogan only has four goals and three assists after a similar number of appearances. Whether the German, a player who could leave in the summer, can increase his creative output on Saturday could be a key factor in whether City can live