Pep Guardiola is unsure if Erling Haaland will be available for Manchester City's huge Premier League showdown with title rivals Arsenal.
Norway international Haaland was substituted at half-time of City's 3-1 win over Aston Villa on Sunday with what Guardiola described after the game as "a big knock".
The 22-year-old is therefore considered a doubt for Wednesday's trip to leaders Arsenal, despite taking part in Monday's recovery training session with the rest of his team-mates.
Providing an update at a press conference on the eve of the match at Emirates Stadium between first and second, Guardiola gave little away on Haaland's fitness.
"We train this afternoon. Right now, I don't know. Yesterday was a recovery day after playing Aston Villa. That's all."
Haaland has found the net 31 times in 29 appearances since joining City from Borussia Dortmund – six goals more than any other player across Europe's top five leagues.
That tally includes 25 goals in 21 Premier League outings, though he has scored in only two of City's six games in the competition this calendar year, albeit netting four times.
City will give Haaland every chance of being available for the huge contest as the reigning champions look to close the three-point gap on Arsenal, who have a game in hand.
Guardiola's side have won three of their past four league games, whereas Arsenal have just two victories in their past five outings.
The two sides face off again in April and Guardiola insists nothing will be decided on Wednesday in terms of where the title ends up.
"So far, they are the best team in the league," Guardiola said. "We felt it a couple of weeks ago when we played them [in the FA Cup]. The commitment, they are sharp.
"It will be a big, big battle. In all departments, you have to be ready.
"Every game is different. You can play good and win and everything is perfect but tomorrow you could lose. There are many games to play.
"Tomorrow is an important one, everyone knows it, and we'll try to do our best. It's important because we can take the points, and stop the best team [in the league] from doing so.
"But I have a feeling many things can happen. Tomorrow can help us be there, but there are many games, tough games. We cannot deny it's important to prove ourselves."
Mikel Arteta enjoyed a successful period working alongside Guardiola, but City are the only side he has failed to beat in the league as Arsenal manager, losing all five games.
Regardless of Arsenal's poor record in this fixture, Guardiola believes Arteta's experience of winning the Premier League could be a factor come the end of the campaign.
"I would say if there are three or four games left and the difference is one point, maybe it could be important," he said.
"There are a lot of points to play for. This is an important match, but there are many more to come."
City have won each of their past 22 Premier League games on a Wednesday, with that the longest winning run on a specific day of the week in the competition's history.
Nuno encouraged by Forest's attitude and commitment, despite Man City defeat
Nuno Espirito Santo believes Nottingham Forest will "achieve what we want" by replicating the attitude demonstrated during their defeat by Manchester City.
Forest went down 2-0 against their title-chasing opponents at the City Ground, and remain just a point clear of the relegation zone with three games remaining.
Despite the defeat, the hosts produced a spirited performance against Pep Guardiola's side, while registering 14 shots on goal compared to 11 from the Citizens - meaning they had had more shots in both meetings this season.
Forest face already relegated Sheffield United, Chelsea and fellow strugglers Burnley in their final three games, and Nuno has seen enough to be confident of securing the Reds' Premier League status for another year.
"We played a good game, were compact, organised and had chances," he told Sky Sports. "We did a good job regarding how hard it is to play against Manchester City, and the players gave it a big go.
"We are disappointed with the result, but the encouragement comes from the way we work, how committed we are, and what we have ahead of us. This is more important.
"We stay positive, and we go for the next three games. With this attitude, we will achieve what we want."
Defender Moussa Niakhate echoes his manager's thoughts, adding: "We had three big chances in the first half, but we didn't score. That was the difference.
"Everybody is working hard. We can be proud. If we perform like this in the next three games, we'll stay up."
Napoli 2-2 Roma: Late Abraham header denies wasteful hosts
A wasteful Napoli were held to a 2-2 draw at home by Roma in Serie A, with a late Tammy Abraham header securing a point for the visitors.
The visitors took the lead from the penalty spot a minute before the hour mark, with Paulo Dybala converting after Juan Jesus fouled Sardar Amzoun.
However, Napoli equalised six minutes later through Matias Olivera's deflected shot, and completed the turnaround with their own penalty six minutes from time as Victor Osimhen tucked away after Khvicha Kvaratskhelia was felled by Renato Sanches.
The hosts could not hold on, though, and were pegged back with two minutes to go. Substitute Abraham's header from a corner was eventually awarded following a VAR review after he had initially been ruled offside.
Data debrief
Napoli remain eighth in the Serie A table on 50 points, the exact amount they had registered after their opening 19 games of last season.
Though his penalty was not enough to earn Roma victory, Dybala continued his impressive start to 2024, during which he has been involved in the joint-most goals in Serie A with 12 (nine goals, three assists).
Gvardiol: Four more finals for City in title fight
Josko Gvardiol believes there are "four more finals" for Manchester City between them and the Premier League title.
City won 2-0 at Nottingham Forest on Sunday thanks to a first-half header from Gvardiol before a 71st-minute Erling Haaland finish wrapped up the points.
The victory moves City one point behind leaders Arsenal with a game in hand. The Gunners played earlier on Sunday, winning 3-2 at north London rivals Tottenham.
The destination of the Premier League title remains in City's hands as they bid for a sixth Premier League title in seven seasons, and Gvardiol acknowledged that every game between now and the end of the season is vital.
"We need to be focused on ourselves," Gvardiol told Sky Sports. "That’s what we are doing.
"There are four more finals to the end so let's do it."
Gvardiol's goal set City on course for victory at the City Ground, nodding home from Kevin De Bruyne's inswinging corner.
It was only Gvardiol's second Premier League goal since arriving at City from RB Leipzig prior to this season.
Gvardiol was somewhat surprised to get on the scoresheet, saying: "I didn't expect to score, but I found myself in a good position.
"It was really tough especially as the pitch was really dry. It's a more than important three points."
Pep Guardiola was delighted to come away with the three points against a Forest side fighting for their lives at the bottom, with the defeat to City leaving Nuno Espirito Santo's men in a perilous position, just a point above the relegation zone with three games to play.
"It was a difficult game," Guardiola told Sky Sports. "They played with bravery. They have fast players with a lot of quality.
"It is a great victory as we had a lot of games behind us. These games are so, so tough at this stage in the Premier League. Now we have a long week to recover."
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
