Erling Haaland has been performing well for Manchester City recently, but Arsene Wenger questions whether he is the right fit for the defending Premier League champions given the team's decline under Pep Guardiola.
In order to "play differently" as they get ready for their crucial title match against Arsenal, Arsene Wenger, the manager of Manchester City, has admitted.
The Norwegian had a thrilling debut under Pep Guardiola after joining from Borussia Dortmund. In just 29 appearances for City across all competitions, the 22-year-old has a staggering 31 goals.
This includes an astonishing 25 Premier League goals, which would have earned Haaland the Golden Boot in each of the previous four seasons. City have not quite been as convincing domestically this term, despite his contributions, due to his arrival.
They are currently in second place in the table, three points off of current leaders Arsenal. Some have argued that Haaland has actually made City worse this season, but Wenger, a three-time Premier League champion, has refuted this claim.
Instead, as the team gears up for a crucial match against his former club, he detailed the tactical differences he has observed and explained his theory that City are "different" with the Norwegian leading the line. The Frenchman said in a statement to beIN Sport: “Poor is maybe a big word.
"He makes Manchester City a different team. A different team, why? Because now with Haaland they win the ball a little less quickly back and when they win the ball they go more quickly to find him.
“Before they were a bit more patient interchanging and the combination game was maybe more patient and shorter and technically different. Today, they rely more on crosses on direct play with Haaland. We speak about City, you could have the same conversation with Liverpool.”
This week's match represents a crucial contest in the title race, and if Haaland is healthy, he will be looking to end his longest streak of Premier League games without scoring. At the Emirates Stadium on Wednesday night, the Gunners welcome title rival Man City.
Haaland enters the contest without scoring in either of his previous two league contests against Spurs or Aston Villa, though he did assist Ilkay Gundogan in the latter. If he fails to score, it will be the longest stretch of time in the Premier League that he has gone without a goal.
Prior to Wednesday's crucial matchup, Wenger declared that his former team is currently his front-runner for the title. City will undoubtedly be hoping that the striker can regain his electric form.
On If the Gunners can win the championship, Wenger said: “I would say yes because I feel the usual threats in the Premier League are all out of the race and the only threat is City and even City is not as dominant as they were last year or two years before.
"I feel since the start of the season City was more vulnerable defensively than they were in the years before.”
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