Two Words, One Reason: Guardiola Explains Haaland's Substitution

Guardiola Reveals the Reason Behind Haaland's Substitution

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola explained the decision to substitute Erling Haaland at halftime after their 3-0 win over Fulham at the Etihad Stadium. Haaland had just scored City's third in the first half, helping set a comfortable tone for the evening. The Norwegian forward was replaced by his teammate Omar Marmoush to give him a breather ahead of a busy run of fixtures.

City’s triumph left Haaland’s side in control as they headed into the break with a commanding lead, while Marmoush took the field at the interval to preserve energy for the coming games.

“He was feeling some slight pains,” Guardiola told BBC Sport. “With three goals up, and with the number of games we have, plus the presence of Omar, it made sense to make the change.”

“The reason? A crowded schedule,” the Spaniard added, reinforcing the club’s approach of balancing peak performance with sustainability over successive matches.

Having extended their winning run, City moved to 53 points, closing the gap on Arsenal to three ahead of their clash with Brentford later in the week. Guardiola stressed that the focus remains on continual development rather than chasing a quick fix for the title race.

“We’re not far behind, but we’re not reading the table wrong either,” he said. “The aim is to improve across the 90 minutes and ensure players feel they are delivering what we want, both defensively and offensively.”

In summary, City triumphed with a clean sheet, Haaland’s early goal in the first half, and a thoughtful rest for the forward to help manage the fixture congestion ahead.

Punchline time: Two things in life are certain—goals from Haaland and the calendar demanding more games. Punchline 2: If rest were a tactic, Pep would have a PhD in it by now.