Erling Haaland may miss crucial Liverpool clash but Pep Guardiola has proven Man City can beat them without him
Manchester City face one of their biggest tests of the season upon their return from the international break when they host Liverpool.
The reigning Premier League champions sit top of the table after 12 games but the Reds are close behind in 2nd by just one point.
A stoppage-time penalty from former star Cole Palmer sealed a 4-4 draw for Chelsea and denied City the chance to go three points clear.
Fan nerves ahead of Liverpool's visit, live on talkSPORT, have been heightened as Erling Haaland picked up an injury on international duty with Norway.
He seemed to suffer a twisted ankle against the Faroe Islands and missed their Euro 2024 qualifying draw with Scotland as a result.
Such an injury could rule him out of action at Saturday lunchtime, but Pep Guardiola already knows how to beat Liverpool without him.
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City took one huge step towards their third league title in April when they beat the Reds 4-1, despite going a goal down after 17 minutes.
Mohamed Salah netted for Liverpool before Julian Alvarez, Kevin De Bruyne, Ilkay Gundogan and Jack Grealish won it for the hosts.
Haaland missed the clash due to a problem with his groin, just the third Premier League match he failed to appear in all season.
Despite his absence, Guardiola fielded a side who were so dominant in the second-half that Liverpool were simply blown away.
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Grealish and De Bruyne both scored and assisted, with Alvarez the man to fill the void left by Haaland at the head of their attack.
Of course, circumstances between then and now are different, with Liverpool struggling for European qualification seven months ago.
They're now establishing themselves as contenders in this season's title race and could offer a more difficult test in five days time.
But City fans and Guardiola will be aware that even without Haaland, who has scored 17 goals this season, they can still find a way to win.
In fact, all three of the matches he's missed across all competitions since he signed last summer have ended in victory.
Leicester were the first to fail to capitalise on his absence and Sevilla were the second in the Champions League group stages last term.
Liverpool also tasted defeat against a Norwegian-less City and it could be deja vu on Saturday in their massive clash.
Listen to live and exclusive commentary of Man City vs Liverpool at the Etihad on Saturday at 12:30pm on talkSPORT.