Destroy. Dominate. Unstoppable. That’s what people say about the Viking warriors who once roamed the waters of Western Europe, and that’s probably also the headlines that the press gave to Erling Haaland’s performance against RB Leipzig last night.
After five goals, the Norwegian striker broke a series of records in the European arena. He surpassed Kylian Mbappe to become the youngest player to reach 30 goals in the Champions League, equaling the “small hand” achievement of Lionel Messi and Luiz Adriano, breaking Man City’s record of scoring in a season despite the season. The new league is more than 2/3 of the way, and at the same time leads the top 5 European leagues in the number of hat-tricks scored in the season (5 times).
But all those numbers are not as important as the way Erling Haaland returned from the recent ups and downs. A Haaland that made the Premier League wobble at the beginning of the season suddenly disappeared after the 2022 World Cup. It was thought that a long vacation would help the Nordic striker show a terrible rebound, but it turned out to make it worse. for the warrior’s weapon to wear out. Three goals in 10 games is not a catastrophic number for a striker, but it is unacceptable for a star like Haaland.
The game is not suitable, limited by Pep’s tactics, does not receive enough support from teammates. Those rumors were like pressure on a spring, so last night Erling Haaland unleashed all his strength to remind everyone of his fear. An excellent Josko Gvardiol in the first leg, who is considered the top young central defender in the old continent, also became too fragile before the wrath of the Viking god of war. And right-back Benjamin Henrichs can only say that he and his teammates were eaten alive by Haaland.
After being substituted in the 63rd minute, Haaland was found to be clearly dissatisfied. Everyone understands that coach Pep Guardiola needs to keep his number one striker before the upcoming extremely important time. As for Haaland, just explaining briefly after the game: “I told him I wanted to complete my double-hattrick!”.
A “bloodthirsty” Haaland has really returned and is ready to haunt all defenses in Europe. And perhaps this time the Norwegian striker will be even more terrifying than before with an upgraded version. Talented strikers always know how to shine as soon as they join a new team, but that’s also when opponents do more research to counter them. It will be an extremely difficult time that every striker has to go through, and the top scorers are the ones who get through the “one-season player” season.
Of course, it is too early to say whether Erling Haaland will continue his current destructive form until the end of the season or the following seasons. But now is the time for all to acknowledge that Haaland has been and is an indispensable factor for Manchester City to realize the Champions League dream. The Citizens under Pep Guardiola have always been in the top seed group, but they still lack a top scorer, a striker who can sweep and tear the opponent’s net like Haaland.
Those are not only important goals that decide the situation, but also the power to revive the team spirit and overwhelm the opponent. That is the most important thing in a fierce arena when every game is as vital as the Champions League. Haaland says he enjoys working with Pep because he is a crazy person. And maybe Pep finally has a man who is enough of a battle and crazy to join him in conquering the missing final goal with Man City.
The Viking God of War has awoken, and now it’s time for The Citizens to set sail.
An article by Frank TD
