The evolution of Manchester City’s lethal weapon Erling Haaland continued against Luton Town. The striker scored 5 as the FA Cup holders booked their place in the sixth round of the competition with a 6-2 win at Kenilworth Road. While the 5 goals Haaland scored will get the headlines he also showed that his all-round game is developing rapidly which is a scary proposition for City’s opponents.
Erling Haaland’s all-round performance was a feature of their 1-nil win over Bournemouth at the Vitality Stadium. His hold-up play was key in providing an outlet for his team in the face of Andoni Iraola’s side’s press. When Haaland was substituted with 15 minutes to go at the Vitality Stadium Pep Guardiola’s side missed his presence. The performance of Haaland against the Cherries laid the foundation for his dominant performance against Luton Town.
At Kenilworth Road last night Manchester City’s lethal weapon was too much for Luton Town to handle. Rob Edwards side attempted to press the FA Cup holders similarly to Bournemouth last weekend. But the ability of Stefan Ortega to play long balls to Haaland successfully neutralized the Luton Town press. From there Haaland’s ability to hold the ball and play in his teammates was on full show.
Given the amount of goals Erling Haaland scores his overall game is often overlooked. Since returning from a foot injury the striker has shown his game is becoming more complete. He has been a more prominent feature of City’s build-up play. That coupled with his deadly finishing last night makes the striker almost unplayable as evidenced by his performance last night.
Erling Haaland is continuing to evolve as a player. Based on last night’s dominant performance it is happening at a rate of knots which will strike fear into City’s rivals.
