Despite his fantastic start to life in England, Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has claimed that Erling Haaland, like any other striker, would ultimately hit a dry period.
Since moving to the Etihad from Dortmund in the summer, the Norwegian attacker has been in amazing form, netting a staggering 15 goals in nine Premier League games.
That includes hat-tricks against Crystal Palace, Nottingham Forest, and Manchester United, and Haaland will look to add to his total against Liverpool this weekend as City travel to Anfield for an enticing game on Sunday.
What has Pep Guardiola said about Erling Haaland?
Pep Guardiola stated before of the game that even he was astonished by how brilliant Haaland has been, but cautioned that the 22-year-old might face more difficulties in the future.
Pep said, “The biggest challenge Erling had was to adapt here as quickly as possible – and it happened”. “He didn’t have any mates. It’s a different lifestyle here in England. In the beginning, this is the most important thing because then he can be himself”.
“When a player arrives you always expect the best – and this guy has scored goals wherever he’s been. But I spoke with Erling to see if he was expecting the goals because so far his numbers are unbelievable”.
Pep further said, “He’s been here for two or three months – and can still improve. Many bad moments are coming for sure – and in those moments he must say ‘it’s okay, now go for the next one”.
“We were surprised by his mentality. We know his skills, but how he behaves in the bad moments, in those situations. He will maybe go 20 minutes, not seeming to be involved in the game – but he is never out of the game. It is so difficult when you don’t touch the ball but then when it arrives you put it in the net”.
Haaland at City
Haaland was brought in largely to fill the vacuum left by the departure of City icon Sergio Aguero to Barcelona last summer. Despite scoring 260 goals for City in all competitions, Aguero never scored at Anfield.
Haaland had already scored at the famed old stadium during his time with Dortmund, but when asked about Aguero’s troubles on Merseyside, Guardiola added: “It’s a topic for Sergio to answer”.
But the truth is that it’s a football game, 11 on 11, and it’s just like any other game. If scoring is tough at Anfield, it is because the opponent is difficult.
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