After the win over Everton, Erling Haaland was mentioned again when he scored both goals to help The Citizens get 3 points. Man City’s goal-scoring machine has returned at the right time when the team needs just enough momentum to regain the top spot.
Erling Haaland’s two goals against Everton reminded fans of the goals against Brighton and West Ham last season. Fast, strong, sweeping through everything and precise in his touches, the Norwegian striker is always as excellent as ever. However, has this young superstar’s limit reached its final state?
Last season, Haaland scored 52 goals for Man City in all competitions and became the “top scorer”. This season, despite being absent from 5 matches due to injury, the Norwegian star still leads the list of highest scorers in the Premier League. In the context of opponents becoming stronger and stronger in every arena, the fact that Haaland is still standing still is something that needs to be taken into account by Pep even though the student in his hands is still excellent.
Up to this point of the season, the 23-year-old striker has the same number of expected goals (xG) as last season (15.7 compared to 16). Exceeding expectations compared to last season is a huge barrier for Haaland in particular and Man City in general.
Last season, Haaland had 36 goals in the Premier League with a season xG of 28. During the seasons playing at Dortmund, Haaland also had an actual number of goals greater than xG in the whole season. However, the conversion rate of opportunities into goals this season is becoming a problem as it is only 40%, quite far behind last season’s 52%.
If you review Haaland’s face-to-face situations from the beginning of the season until now, you can see that the Norwegian striker missed quite a lot. Previously, every time the former Salzburg star faced each other, it felt like a goal was inevitable. Now, it is no longer like that. Kevin De Bruyne’s 4-month injury could also be the reason for Erling Haaland’s decrease in goals/chance numbers. However, everything needs to be explained from this striker first.
“My advice to reporters and journalists is not to criticize Haaland too much. You can criticize the coach, defender or midfielder but don’t target the person who scored those goals for Man City. “You know what? Because Haaland will score again and you guys will probably have to apologize” – Pep stood up for his student in September 2023.
Pep is right but not all. As Haaland’s missed opportunities appear more frequently, this striker also needs to remind himself to improve. Last season, Man City won the treble with Haaland as the leader of the attack. This season, when the Norwegian star was absent, the Etihad home team still played well after being out of breath in the early part of the season. That shows that Haaland needs to find a way to overcome the threshold, from being a simple goal-making machine, he needs to have an irreplaceable position to go further with the team.
In the context of players who can score goals and play as a “false number 9” such as Ilkay Gundogan, Raheem Sterling, Gabriel Jesus and Riyad Mahrez all leaving the team, the role of a true “number 9” is becoming more and more difficult for Erling Haaland. . The two goals against Everton may not have been too bright, but they were a milestone for Haaland to start his journey beyond the threshold, avoiding standing still and falling downhill without realizing it.