Just like Cristiano Ronaldo was at Manchester United, Erling Haaland is at the current moment in time, making Manchester City worse.
It might seem like a shocking statement to make when you consider Haaland broke all goalscoring records over the first part of the season and is still on track to win the Golden Boot, with 21 goals to his name.
But since the World Cup break, City haven’t been at their best. Pep Guardiola, as we have seen with four league titles in five years, loves to dominate possession, with as many ball-playing midfielders on the pitch as possible. The Citizens pass their way into the final third and then look for cut-backs and tap-ins from wide positions. It’s how Guardiola has dominated divisions in Spain, Germany and now England, and his methods are yet to let him down over a league season.
With Gabriel Jesus playing wide right last term, every time City dropped points the talk was about them ‘needing’ a striker. A clinical player to make the difference in the big games. This summer, when they got Haaland, most thought he would be the man to take them clear at the top of the Premier League and win them the Champions League.
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It started off perfectly. Goal after goal and win after win, but the last month has exposed a deeper problem. And it isn’t Haaland’s fault in the slightest. He has been brilliant, both ruthless in front of goal and intelligent with his runs, but the team isn't as functional as they were last season.
In the defeat against Manchester United, they registered just one shot on target. Haaland had just 19 touches. It’s not an uncommon figure for Haaland this season, who only registered 16 touches in both games against Crystal Palace and Nottingham Forest but scored a hat-trick in each.
But despite his insane goalscoring record, he doesn’t fit the usual mould of a Guardiola player. He wants forwards that link the play, get involved in midfield and stretch teams in wide areas. Haaland, for all his physical qualities and finishing ability, just isn’t that sort of player. I’m not sure he ever will be.
His frustration is clear every time he makes a darting run and his teammates ignore him. On several occasions at Old Trafford, sometimes up against Luke Shaw, he made bursts to try and break the defensive line. Instead of chipping the ball over for him to chase or compete for, City’s midfielders instead played it safe and chose to keep possession, as they have done so successfully over the past five seasons.
All of Guardiola’s success has come from overloads and possession. Every single player must partake in looking after the ball, otherwise they won’t get the overloads they need in key positions. Having also failed to register a shot on target in the League Cup defeat against Southampton, a game in which Haaland ineffectively came off the bench for 34 minutes, these problems have come to the surface.
It seems unlikely that Guardiola will move away from his style to suit Haaland, even though that seems sensible at this moment in time - but will Haaland change for Pep?
It didn’t work for Zlatan Ibrahimovic at Barcelona under the Spanish boss. He may have scored 16 in 29 La Liga matches but after just one season he was moved on. This certainly won’t happen to a talent the size of Haaland, but Guardiola must find a way to make it work.
Jesus, the forward Haaland replaced at the Etihad, had 73 touches in his last appearance at Manchester United in a 2-0 win. The manager clearly wants Haaland to have more touches, but he is never going to be a link-man like his predecessor. Losing Raheem Sterling and Oleksandr Zinchenko this summer, as well as Jesus, hasn't helped in terms of attacking fluidity either.
The Norwegian, as we have seen this season, is far better when he isn’t involved in the play. His pace makes him impossible to pick up from deep and in Kevin De Bruyne he seems to have the perfect partner to assist him. But that direct style of vertical passing isn’t what Guardiola is used to, and there’s a clear disconnect between one of the finest strikers on the planet and the rest of his team right now.
Against Chelsea in the FA Cup, Haaland was left on the bench as his side scored four in fluid fashion. They won two penalties and produced their best performance since the World Cup with their star man sat on the sidelines.
It would be too simplistic to look at that isolated result and suggest City are better without Haaland, but if he doesn’t score due to his style of play, he is going to attract criticism. Guardiola is one of the best managers in the world and Haaland is one of the greatest strikers. It’s surely just a matter of time until they find common ground once more.
