Erling Haaland is not in the lineup for Manchester City as the Premier League leaders take on AEK Athens in the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday, Oct. 20.
Haaland has been on a tear, scoring five goals in his last three matches including a double against Ipswich Town last time out. The superstar forward was seen limping after that match, though he told his manager he was "OK," following the game.
But Haaland has been rested for the game against AEK at the Etihad Stadium, starting the match on the bench.
In a pre-game interview with TNT Sports, Man City coach Enzo Maresca said Haaland wasn't dealing with any injury.
“No, no injury. It’s just to manage his minutes. Also, from the last game, we had some small problems, so it’s a mix of different things,"
Maresca said.
City had been looking for the right time to get Haaland a bit of rest, with the player going from a busy World Cup in which he scored seven goals straight into the Premier League season, where he leads the league with eight goals so far this campaign.
“At some point we probably need to give him rest, some days off,” Maresca said last week.
“We are thinking about this not just with Erling because we have players, unfortunately or fortunately, they are playing all the games with us and all the games with the international teams."
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Why isn't Erling Haaland starting for Manchester City vs. AEK Athens?
