Coach Pep Guardiola was overjoyed in the opening few days of the year when star forward Jeremy Doku and, in particular, crucial striker Erling Haaland returned to training with the club ahead of Sunday’s FA Cup third round encounter against Huddersfield.

Haaland scored 19 goals in all competitions this season before being forced to miss Manchester City’s 1-0 loss to Aston Villa on December 6 due to leg bone damage. However, the Norwegian international is said to have returned to training with the squad ahead of Sunday’s FA Cup third round match against Huddersfield. Jeremy Doku, who has missed the last eight games owing to a muscle issue, trained among his colleagues.

The upcoming return of Haaland and Doku will serve as a message to Man.City’s opponents, as is Kevin De Bruyne’s homecoming. The Belgian star, who has been out since suffering a hamstring injury on the first day of the season, returned to the first squad as an unused replacement in Man.City’s 2 -0 triumph over Sheffield United last weekend.

Man.City is now 5 points behind Liverpool in the Premier League, but still has a game in hand. The return of De Bruyne, Doku, and Haaland will provide significant impetus as the Etihad home squad pushes for a fourth consecutive Premier League title.

Coach Guardiola also recently hailed the… unusual prospect of having the strongest team in hand for the first time this season: “De Bruyne being ready to return is amazing news, just like we were waiting for.” Jeremy Doku, Erling Haaland, or John Stones, the second half of the season has arrived! After January, it’s not as busy because we only have three or four matches. Then comes February, when the Champions League arrives, and in the last stretch of the season, we need everyone, and astonishingly, Kevin is back, as are Erling and Jeremy.”