In the last 8 matches, Erling Haaland has 6 matches without scoring. The feeling that the opponents gradually find a way to stop the Man City striker.
Haaland rarely loses more than 3 matches. However, the time the Norwegian striker lost his form more and more. In fact, it is hard to consider the former Borussia Dortmund star dry of goals. When a striker loses his inspiration to score, though, it’s worrisome.
Since scoring a hat-trick against Wolves at the end of January, he has only added two goals and two assists. This is the worst form of the 22-year-old player in the Man City shirt.
Countering Haaland
Everyone understands that shots are fundamental for a striker to score. At this time, Haaland’s finishing frequency is quite low. In the last 8 matches, the striker born in 2000 launched 14 shots, only 3 of which hit the target.
In the last match Man City beat Newcastle 2-0, Haaland only had two shots: a header that was deflected and a shot that missed the target. In other words, Haaland hardly threatens goalkeeper Nick Pope.
The away record of the Norwegian spearhead is even worse. Against Tottenham, he failed to hit a shot in the 0-1 defeat. In the previous eight games up to the milestone of scoring a hat-trick against Wolves, Haaland made a total of 25 shots, including eight shots towards the Leeds goal, yielding eight goals.
In the first 8 matches with Man City, Haaland was even more explosive. From his Premier League debut against West Ham and a Champions League home game against former club Borussia Dortmund, Haaland has 32 shots, scoring 13 goals. Evidence shows that not only missed opportunities, Haaland simply did not have many more opportunities to shoot.
After the initial nightmare period, it seems that the defenses in the Premier League are gradually becoming wiser and know how to catch the most dangerous player in the league. The best way to limit Haaland is to prevent this striker from appearing in the penalty area. Newcastle do it well. During the whole match, Haaland only had one shot in the 16.5 m area, while facing Tottenham, Haaland didn’t even have any touches in the penalty area.
Opponents who like to raise the squad are considered “delicious” for Haaland. When Man City continuously pumped the ball into the penalty area, the defense easily revealed loopholes and Haaland was easy to score thanks to his quick reaction. In contrast, when trying to play with a low back block and prevent Haaland from breaking through behind the defence, the striker’s range is significantly limited.
Man City’s problem
How well Haaland scored is not a goal. He has 86 goals in 89 games for Dortmund and 29 goals in 27 games for RB Salzburg. Going to the Premier League, Haaland scored 18 goals in 12 matches in what many consider to be the toughest tournament in the world. But now, Haaland is no longer scoring regularly.
Before Haaland’s “slight” decline, Pep Guardiola did not blame his star striker. When asked about Haaland’s recent tally of goals before the 4-1 win over Bournemouth last month, Guardiola insisted: “It’s our fault. Not Erling. He’s been impressive all season.”
Guardiola is told that Haaland has missed 18 big opportunities this season, more than any other player in the Premier League. However, the former Barcelona coach did not mind: “I don’t need the numbers. At the end of the game, a second later I knew exactly if Erling was involved in the game or not. Of course, they kept Erling tighter. But that depends on the team, not him.”
Haaland’s declining form coincides with the time when Man City no longer shows the image of dominating the Premier League in recent weeks. Some players are no longer themselves.
Conductor Kevin De Bruyne proved ineffective in a number of matches, except for the win against Arsenal. Phil Foden gradually regained his sense of the ball but also struggled since the 2022 World Cup. Joao Cancelo left Etihad, Man City lost one of the most creative players in the squad.
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Haaland did exactly what it needed to, blowing away every defense in his first season in the Premier League. But the goal is dwindling. The match against Crystal Palace was an opportunity for Haaland to shoot again.
Between now and the end of the season, Haaland himself will have the answer to whether this is just a slight drop or he really has been caught. Man City are 5 points behind Arsenal and this is when Haaland has to show his value.
Haaland scored 27 goals in 25 games, leaving Harry Kane 9 goals ahead in the Premier League. Impressive achievement, but it means nothing if “The Citizens” is toppled at the end of the season.
