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Pep Guardiola has provided an update on two Manchester City stars, Erling Haaland and Kevin de Bruyne ahead of their FA Cup semi-final clash. The Citizens will face Chelsea this weekend at Wembley, for a place in the final of the prestigious cup competition.
It comes in the wake of their UEFA Champions League quarterfinal exit, where they lost on penalties to 14-time champions Real Madrid.
Guardiola had to take off two of his key players in Haaland and De Bruyne during regular time, as both players complained that they couldn't see out the game.
With the FA Cup semi-final against Chelsea on the horizon, Guardiola has now provided a fitness update on the two City stars. On Haaland, Guardiola said during a pre-match press conference as quoted by Fabrizio Romano:
"Erling Haaland felt something, muscular issue. We will see."
On De Bruyne, Guardiola said:
"Kevin De Bruyne felt his hamstring, so tired. But he feels well now”.
Both Haaland and De Bruyne have a combined total of 56 goal contributions for the Citizens this season across all competitions.
Erling Haaland has registered 31 goals and six assists, while teammate Kevin de Bruyne, has five goals and 14 assists. It would be interesting to see if both will feature against Chelsea this weekend.
"He's an exceptional player" - Pep Guardiola speaks on former Manchester City star ahead of FA Cup semi-final
Pep Guardiola was asked about former City star Cole Palmer, who is expected to face his side this weekend at Wembley.
Palmer has been one of the revelations of the 2023-24 football campaign since securing a reported £45 million move to Chelsea, from Manchester City. The 21-year-old English forward has so far registered an impressive total of 23 goals and 13 assists across all competitions for Chelsea this season.
Meanwhile, there have been talks about whether Manchester City already regret their decision to allow the promising youngster to leave last summer.
Speaking ahead of the FA Cup semi-final showdown at Wembley, Guardiola had this to say about Palmer:
"He was asking for two seasons to leave Man City. I said: stay. He wanted to leave. What can we do?!”
He continued:
"He’s an exceptional player with super potential... I didn't give him the minutes he deserves that he now has at Chelsea."
It will be interesting to see how the English forward will perform against his former side in the semifinals of the FA Cup this weekend.
