“They didn’t stop me. I scored.”
When it was put to him after Manchester City’s 2-1 win over Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League on Wednesday night. The German side had defended especially well against him, Erling Haaland’s response was typically brusque.
For well over 80 minutes Dortmund had kept their former star quiet. He had just 26 touches in the game – the fewest of any player. But that did not stop him from having the final say.
Even by the young forward’s increasingly sky-high standards, his winner here was especially impressive. The assist – a sumptuous outside of the boot cross from Joao Cancelo – was good enough in itself.
The finish, in which Haaland threw himself across the ball and acrobatically volleyed it left-footed across goalkeeper Alex Meyer, was arguably the best of his 13 goals in nine games for Man City so far. [BBC]