Considering Erling Haaland has started the season on fire, he would be disappointed with the fact that he has failed to find the back of the net in Manchester City’s last two Premier League games.
Both Newcastle United and Fulham would have been wary of Haaland’s goalscoring threat heading into their respective games against Manchester City.
However, both Eddie Howe and Marco Silva would have taken satisfaction from the fact that they managed to restrict the £375,000-a-week marksman.
Goalscorers of Haaland’s ilk put up the staggering numbers they tend to season after season due to their sheer hunger for scoring goals; a trait that typifies every great striker.
As a result, the 24-year-old would be reflecting on where he could have done better in both games.
But on the whole, Haaland should be satisfied with his tally of 10 goals in seven league games for Manchester City so far.
The Man City stat that Haaland will not be a fan of whatsoever
If the Norwegian continues to score goals at the same rate throughout the entirety of the campaign, he could have as many as 43 to his name by the end of the season.
Haaland will be hoping to break his own record for the most goals in a single Premier League season (36) and that too by a significant margin if possible.
However, as things stand, the statistics are stacked against him.
As per the Premier League’s official website, Manchester City have created 17 big chances in seven games — the sixth most behind Fulham (18), Aston Villa (21), Liverpool (23), Chelsea (24) and Arsenal (24).
Alarmingly, City have created just one more big chance in the league this game than Manchester United (16) — who have scored the joint second-least goals (five) alongside Crystal Palace after Southampton (four).
Haaland would have every reason to be frustrated with City’s chance creation this season.
The fact that the Leeds-born frontman has still manage to convert a majority of those chances into goals exemplifies how incredible a campaign he has had so far.
But considering the form Haaland is in, he would be expecting much better service from his teammates.
Why Pep Guardiola could be responsible for potential Erling Haaland frustration
It seems like especially since Rodri’s injury, Pep Guardiola has doubted down on his Manchester City side prioritising control and a level of conservatism with his team selection.
Guardiola’s team selection against Newcastle during both sides’ 1-1 draw saw creative sparks like Phil Foden, Savinho and Jeremy Doku on the bench — despite Kevin De Bruyne being sidelined due to injury.
An attacking quartet of Ilkay Gundogan, Rico Lewis, Bernardo Silva and Jack Grealish were perhaps picked to ensure City retain the ball as well as possible to prevent the Magpies from hitting them on the counter.
Similarly, during Manchester City’s 3-2 win against Fulham, Foden was the only creative attacker that Guardiola started as the likes of Doku and Savinho were benched once again,
Against Slovan Bratislava, the Belgian winger registered an assist and perhaps justified why the Premier League winners should throw caution to the wind to maximise Haaland up front.
Yet, Pep Guardiola has been quite pragmatic in selecting his attack for both games where his Manchester City side failed to curb Newcastle and Fulham’s threats on the break in any case.
After the international break, while Guardiola should not necessarily employ a gung-go approach, picking two out of Foden, Savinho and Doku should be a non-negotiable requirement until De Bruyne returns to full fitness for him to ensure his team wreaks havoc in the final third and creates chances for Haaland.
Otherwise, the Manchester City talisman’s form will go to waste as his side will struggle to create too many chances and subsequently drop points.
