Pep Guardiola revealed one thing he doesn't like about Erling Haaland in big matches as his fight with Haaland continues after the FA cup defeat to Man Utd yesterday

Pep Guardiola revealed one thing he doesn’t like about Erling Haaland in big matches as his fight with Haaland continues after the FA cup defeat to Man Utd yesterday

NEWS

FOOTBALL

CELEBS

Pep Guardiola reveals why he dropped Erling Haaland after brutal Roy Keane criticism

Erling Haaland was criticised for his performance against Arsenal and has since been dropped to the bench by Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola for Wednesday’s clash with Aston Villa

MANCHESTER, ENGLAND – APRIL 03: Erling Haaland of Manchester City looks on during warm ups prior to the Premier League match between Manchester City and Aston Villa at Etihad Stadium on April 03, 2024 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images)

Erling Haaland was benched against Aston Villa(Michael Regan/Getty Images)

By Nathan Ridley

Pep Guardiola insists that Erling Haaland is only being rested after the Manchester City boss named him on the bench for their crucial game against Aston Villa.

His decision comes after Manchester United legend Roy Keane made headlines for brutally criticising the City striker, claiming that his “general play” was “poor” and “almost like League Two player.” His comments were prompted by Haaland failing to score in Sunday’s drab 0-0 draw with title rivals Arsenal and the Norwegian was benched as Villa came to the Etihad Stadium.

But speaking to TNT Sports ahead of Wednesday’s Premier League match, Guardiola was asked if his decision to bench both Haaland and team-mate Kevin De Bruyne was merely down to managing their minutes. “Yeah,” the City boss replied. “In two-and-a-half days we have another game at 12:30 [away to Crystal Palace ].

“I think all the teams at the top have a big squad, a good squad, and of course we have it. Today we decided for this line-up for this tough opening and [we will] go for it.”

Mikel Arteta explains Bukayo Saka’s absence as Arsenal boss makes five changes vs Luton

Leeds eye Kalvin Phillips return but Man City flop will need to take a major pay cut

Guardiola had hit back at Keane’s criticisim during his press conference on Tuesday, saying: “He’s the best striker in the world. He helped us win last season and the reason why we didn’t create many answers from Erling is we need more presence in the final third with more people.

“We played an exceptional game, I reviewed the game against Arsenal but we just missed more people in the final third. The quality and different skillset we have, Haaland is exceptional.”

He added: “Some actions he missed, sometimes it’s the managers, sometimes the opponent is really good, there are many many reasons. In football there is not just one reason, sometimes where you have success or you don’t have success, there are many reasons, it’s football, it’s a team sport.”

itopsoccer

itopsoccer is the best website for football news and update

Pep Guardiola revealed one thing he doesn’t like about Erling Haaland in big matches as his fight with Haaland continues after the FA cup defeat to Man Utd yesterday

Pep Guardiola revealed one thing he doesn’t like about Erling Haaland in big matches as his fight with Haaland continues after the FA cup defeat to Man Utd yesterday

Be the first to comment

Leave a Reply Cancel reply