Haaland rewrote the record books last season, with 52 goals from 53 games in all competitions, as Manchester City clinched an historic Treble. But on Wednesday night, as holders City bowed out of the Champions League on penalties to Real Madrid, Haaland cut a peripheral, subdued figure, unable to influence the game.
Given the absurdly high standards Haaland set in his first season at City, perhaps he has raised expectations to an unrealistic level. But for a player whose game is all about scoring, two goals in his last seven games for City feels almost like a drought for the Norwegian star. Over two games against Real, Haaland had just two shots on target and lost possession 14 times. He managed only 21 touches over 90 minutes on Wednesday and did not complete a successful pass in the game until the 37th minute.
For a coach so revered for his tactical acumen and innovative thinking, it is curious there have been so few games in the past two seasons when Guardiola has felt City may have a better chance of beating opponents with different personnel. “It was going to be so difficult for him to repeat what he did last season, scoring over 50 goals. This season he missed 10 games, but he's still the Premier League's joint top goalscorer, so that shows you if he does get the chance, he'll score. But you've got to give Real Madrid credit for the way they defended against him.”
Premier League Champions League Manchester City FC
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