Manchester City take on Arsenal today in the Premier League – and many eyes will be on Erling Haaland and his battle with the two centre-halves.
Haaland has made an explosive start to the new season, scoring nine goals so far.
The Norwegian superstar has been utterly devastating in front of goal, and looks like he could finish any chance that comes his way so far.
The word ‘unstoppable’ has been used a number of times this term to describe Haaland, which is understandable.
The rate at which he is scoring is simply frightening, and only Inter have kept him at bay so far this term.
But ahead of today’s game with Arsenal, former Gunners striker Alan Smith has been speaking about Haaland – and has suggested there’s one way defenders can actually deal with him.
Alan Smith claims ‘you’ve got to be cute’ when defending against Man City star Erling Haaland
After being kept quiet in the Champions League by Inter in midweek, Haaland will be hoping to get back amongst the goals today for City in the huge game with Arsenal.
Last time he faced the Gunners, Gabriel and William Saliba did a really good job containing him.
Gabriel was particularly aggressive in the way he marked him, and it would be no surprise if that was the plan again today.
For Smith though, the best way to deal with Haaland is to actually be ‘cute’, and not let him know where you are.
He said (via mancity.com): “He’s a defender’s nightmare. As a defender, you wouldn’t want to get involved in a tussle with him. You’ve got to be cute and not let him know where you are.
“Those were the worst defenders for me when you couldn’t feel them. I always liked to feel where the defender was but if you don’t know, it’s much harder.
“In terms of this weekend’s opponents Arsenal, they have two excellent centre-halves in Gabriel and Saliba so it will be very interesting how that one pans out.”
Haaland has the awareness to deal with ‘cute’ defending
It is interesting to hear Smith suggesting that being ‘cute’ is the way to deal with Haaland.
In theory, he is right because we know how physical Haaland is and more often than not, defenders do not come out on top when engaging in a physical battle with him.
But Haaland’s awareness is an underrated trait of his. He is constantly scanning and looking around to see where defenders are.
Sometimes, there is simply very little anyone can do against a player blessed with such incredible physicality and understanding of the game. In this sense, he is very unique – as Shaun Wright-Phillips suggested earlier this week. The former winger also noted that Haaland’s all-round game has gotten much better.
In theory, the best way to deal with Haaland is to try and double up on him. Even then, he is very difficult to completely nullify.
