ERLING HAALAND returned to training with the rest of the squad, giving Manchester City a significant boost.

The Norwegian forward has not played since sustaining a stress injury to his foot during the December 6 1-0 loss at Aston Villa.

Erling Haaland looks ready to return

Haaland is back in first team training

The Treble champions have participated in nine games throughout that period, including the two in which they won the Club World Cup just before Christmas.

The 23-year-old Haaland performed a brief workout in Abu Dhabi on Monday, which will greatly benefit Pep Guardiola and his team.

Tomorrow marks City’s return home as they get ready for a hectic few weeks that begin with Friday’s FA Cup fourth-round trip to Tottenham.

But this time, manager Guardiola will probably exercise caution with his top forward.

Before the 5-0 FA Cup thrashing of Huddersfield in round three, Haaland returned to training at the beginning of January. However, he was told to take it easy because he was still feeling the injury.

It appears that he has overcome that setback, and City will be hoping that he returns to the team shortly.

Prior to his team’s most recent game, a 3-2 victory over Newcastle on January 13, Guardiola expressed his optimism that Haaland will return by the end of the month, and that seems likely.

The return of captain Kevin De Bruyne, who has missed most of the season due to a hamstring injury he sustained against Burnley in the club’s season opener, gave City a boost in their victory over the Magpies.

Over the weekend, John Stones, a defender who has been sidelined since December 27 due to an ankle injury, trained alongside the first team.

As they compete for championships on three fronts in the last stretch of the season, Guardiola will be hoping that the return of three of his most important players goes as planned.

With a game remaining, City trails Liverpool by five points as they aim to win the league for the fourth time in a row.