Manchester City

Man City: Stan Collymore questions imminent Erling Haaland capture

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Image for Man City: Stan Collymore questions imminent Erling Haaland capture

Ex-Premier League striker Stan Collymore believes Erling Haaland does not suit Manchester City‘s style and the Citizens are going down the Galacticos route.

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Haaland is on the verge of completing a move to the Etihad Stadium from Borussia Dortmund, with the Norway international already said to have passed a medical. He will reportedly cost City around €75m (£64.3m) in transfer fees and will earn £300,000 a week.

Writing on Twitter, Collymore believes City may be throwing money at the problem rather than targetting players who fit Pep Guardiola’s philosophy. He said, “City going Galactico route ? Bought JG, didn’t need that type of player. Buying EH, don’t need that type of player (City dominate opponens half, have creativity everywhere so literally only need a 25 goal fox in the box) . Why buy EH to use only 1 of 4 of his immense skillsets?”.

TIF Thoughts on Haaland capture

Haaland is, undoubtedly, one of the most promising players in world football. In just 181 senior matches, he already has 134 goals, including an astonishing 85 in 88 games for his current club. In the Champions League, he has 23 goals in just 18 appearances – his ability to find the back of the net is incredible.

Will Haaland be a success at City?

Yes

Yes

No

No

Whether he will fit into Guardiola’s team, though, is another question. City are missing a centre-forward but, with a three-point Premier League lead with three games remaining, they are hardly struggling without one. Haaland is far from the small, technical player that the Spanish boss appreciates, but rather a more traditional centre-forward. It is worth remembering that Guardiola fell out with a striker of a similar build, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, at Barcelona, while Robert Lewandowski, another out-and-out number nine, only flourished at Bayern Munich once the boss had departed. Even Sergio Aguero who, while small in stature, was a typical marksman, had his starting XI place challenged by Gabriel Jesus, who now appears frequently on the wing. Haaland is that good that he may well be able to adapt to whatever Guardiola wants, but it is certainly not a signing that fits the usual City profile under the Catalan.

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