Manchester Metropolis boss Pep Guardiola has hailed Erling Haaland as already the most effective strikers he has ever labored with in a glittering profession that has beforehand seen him coach the likes of Robert Lewandowski, Sergio Aguero and Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
Haaland lately scored his twentieth objective of the season in simply his thirteenth look since his summer season transfer from Borussia Dortmund.
That ended an astonishing run of consecutive Premier League residence video games by which he had scored a hat-trick at three and Guardiola joked instantly afterwards that he was ‘so upset’ his new celebrity had solely scored as soon as and must be ‘sacked’.
As Metropolis now put together to face Copenhagen within the Champions League – Haaland scored two within the reverse fixture final week – Guardiola has mirrored on the place the Norwegians ranks total in a managerial profession that spans 15 years.
“He is without doubt one of the finest,” Guardiola mentioned at his pre-match convention. “I’ve many very, superb strikers and Erling is one in all them.
“He understands rapidly and he’s a pleasant man. He’s ready to do that for the crew, however we have to work collectively and that has occurred. I converse lots about him, however typically I shouldn’t must as a result of the numbers, they do that.”
Having struggled with accidents final season at Borussia Dortmund and making solely 30 appearances in all competitions, there had been concern over how Haaland would possibly cope bodily at Metropolis.
However Guardiola, after initially hinting at common relaxation for Haaland earlier within the season, mentioned lately that Metropolis have been engaged on the participant’s health and he’s now able to play usually.
The 2-time Champions League winner hasn’t dominated out rotating his beginning XI towards Copenhagen, although, admitting that fatigue could possibly be a think about crew choice.
“It is true there is a danger of fatigue,” he mentioned. “I’ll determine on the choice [on Tuesday]. I’ll converse with gamers, medical doctors and physios and determine.”
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