‘I didn’t want him to break the record for Messi! Pep Guardiola on taking Erling Haaland off against Burnley
Pep Guardiola attributes Erling Haaland’s impressive streak of scoring to his positive outlook on life.
Meanwhile, Burnley’s defeated manager, Vinny Kompany, acknowledges that Haaland is on his way to becoming a top-tier player like Ronaldo and Messi.
Haaland’s sixth hat-trick of the season in Manchester City’s 6-0 FA Cup victory over Burnley brought his total to 42 goals for the season, which equals Ronaldo’s best tally for Manchester United when he won the Ballon d’Or.
Haaland is expected to surpass Mo Salah and Ruud van Nistelrooy’s record of 44 goals in all competitions during the Premier League era soon, and he also has a chance of breaking Clive Allen’s 49 goals for Tottenham in the 1986/87 season.
Dixie Dean’s record of 60 goals in the 1920s would be a remarkable personal achievement for Haaland.
Guardiola said: “This guy (Haaland) will have a problem in the future because everyone will expect to him to get three or four every game, and that’s not going to happen.
“But I know him, he doesn’t care about that. He is so positive and optimistic in his life. He never complains and as long as the team plays with this intensity, he will score goals, though the exact target, I don’t know.
“He is so effective and is such an incredible threat with his power. But his joy of life, always thinking good things will happen, that helps too.”
At the end of the match, Guardiola replaced Haaland, just as he had substituted him midweek against Leipzig, which prevented Haaland from becoming the first player to score six goals in a single Champions League game.
When asked about substituting his center-forward again and possibly missing out on the chance for a record-breaking sixth goal, Manchester City manager, who was criticized previously for denying Haaland the opportunity to surpass Lionel Messi’s record of five goals for Barcelona against Leverkusen, responded with a quick one-liner.
“I didn’t want him to break the record for Messi in the FA Cup,” he quipped. “I try to punish my players – it is my intention!’
Manchester City’s advancement to the FA Cup semi-finals implies that they still have a chance to achieve a possible treble, but they face a difficult challenge in the Champions League against Bayern Munich, Guardiola’s former club.
“To be alive in three competitions is incredible. The best is coming and hopefully we can handle it game by game,” said the manager.
“We have to win nearly all the games in the Premier League because Arsenal are playing so good and it is an honour to play Bayern.
“I had the feeling the players have started to feel we could not lose any game or it would be over. That is when we are at our best. In the Premier League, we have to win, win and the Champions League is what it is.”
‘I didn’t want him to break the record for Messi! Pep Guardiola on taking Erling Haaland off against Burnley
