Haaland to Barcelona might become a reality. I can really see him thriving there, but fortunately they cant afford him. Not yet atleast

Nope, Barcelona is broke!

Haaland would've scored much more goals in a team like Madrid or even farca.

But pep the hipster has much success staying true to his ways so I can't say he's been wrong.

Turok_TTZ wrote:Haaland would've scored much more goals in a team like Madrid or even farca.

But pep the hipster has much success staying true to his ways so I can't say he's been wrong.

Any other manager would make his life easier. It almost feels like an exaggeration to say that he's playing football, these days Even a mid-table club would do him a world of good in terms of being able to utilize his skill set.

As for Pep, I assumed the idea was for Haaland to be some kind of wildcard that would ghost through games and act as a decoy that would open up space for Foden, Silva, Grealish and KDB, then pop up from out of nowhere to score scrappy, clutch goals when no one expects it.

As a game plan, that would go some way in explaining why Haaland has been playing in such an extremely subdued role, but it makes no sense to play in such a way when it doesn't work against the teams that matter. And Foden proved to me yet again that when City aren't comfortably beating the opposing team, all he ever does is pass the ball backwards and fire the ball into the stands.

Maybe Pep's plan isn't a bad idea when you want to win league games, but considering the quality of the teams that he's managed in his career, you'd think he'd perform better in the CL considering the genius status that's commonly associated with him.

Vibe wrote:Pep sure does love to use a Ferrari like a Fiat. We've seen it.

One of the reasons I love this forum is that everyone everywhere is shitting on Haaland, live, internet, television, you name it.

But this forum knows better.

He's not totally blameless in some of these disappearing acts though. City indeed doesn't play to his strengths but his record in big moments against elite opposition is starting to become concerning. You'd expect players of his caliber to make something happen or create their own chances at some point.

farfan wrote:

Vibe wrote:Pep sure does love to use a Ferrari like a Fiat. We've seen it.

One of the reasons I love this forum is that everyone everywhere is shitting on Haaland, live, internet, television, you name it.

But this forum knows better.

He's not totally blameless in some of these disappearing acts though. City indeed doesn't play to his strengths but his record in big moments against elite opposition is starting to become concerning. You'd expect players of his caliber to make something happen or create their own chances at some point.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I do believe he did that at his two former clubs. Again, I might be wrong, but my impression is that he's not meant to be taking risks in his current role in the team. He hardly ever uses any of his physical or athletic qualities, even against inferior opposition.

Which is quite a contrast to how he played at both Dortmund and Salzburg, where he'd get injured more frequently, but he was much, much more explosive, made regular runs behind defenses and actually contributed to build up play. Nowadays, he just drags defenders away from the usual suspects and then he hovers around the box in case something comes his way.

I haven't checked the stats, but I imagine it must be very common for him to get less than 20 touches on the ball per match, and I suspect he's been instructed to not take such risks that you expect from him since he's completely stopped doing it. Even his hold up play sucked against us, and that used to be a strength of his. I'm not sure what he's good at right now.

the xcx wrote:Haaland to Barcelona might become a reality. I can really see him thriving there, but fortunately they cant afford him. Not yet atleast

Why barca lol? He'd be used in a similar way as at City. He is tailored for madrid

4:45

Sums up my view on his development at Man City. Trophy-wise, staying at City might be his best option, but this transfer has sucked the life out of his actual football ability.

I see a lot of comments making the argument that Farfan made; that he's simply not doing enough, and he should be making more solo efforts to stand out, but that doesn't make any sense to me after comparing how he plays for Man City to how he played prior to moving there. He's gradually transitioned into a static, decoy.

100% agree thimmy.  Been worried about this ever since he joined Pep at City as you recall.  It's a tragedy.  Haaland is using half his ability (scoring as a poacher) when he's a dynamic threat.

It's not just him.  Enrique has made Mbappe static at PSG too when he pushed him to CF.  As a CF in this type of system, you cannot get out of your area as it's all about roles.  The best positions are wingers/fullbacks and CMs with this system.  CFs and CBs are completely left out to dry as those two zones are both stressed and isolated.  CBs are asked to play high with nobody behind them... fullbacks are often pushed up so any error is quasi-fatal.  CFs are asked to hold the ball, make runs to open spaces for others, and poach...  traditional 9s with limited touches.  

So if I'm a CB or a modern CF, I avoid joining any team that uses Pep's tactics.  You're an afterthought, not the emphasis.

It just makes you appreciate the rivalry between CR7 and Messi even more. Haaland and Mbappe are supposed to be the successors but neither of them really stand out. The differences between the league qualities also do not help the cause

I think the question is where will he go?

Barca would like him, but it will be 5 years before they could afford him!

Often rumored RMad will get him, but that makes little sense, financially nor futbol wise.

I would like to see him go to either Pool or Arsenal, but doubt if that will happen?

Bayern could be a option, but I don’t see them spending the amount of money it would take.

That leaves only PSG!!

Anyone play Clash of Clans? Is it actually good? I dont play it but this Haaland character looks pretty fun Even when he retires he seems to have the right characteristics to be some sort of public figure for sure be it in movies or comedy or commentary etc....

I don’t play Clash of Clans, but the advertisement for his character in that game is already annoying me. It seems to show up everywhere for me.