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Ex-Barcelona and Manchester United defender Gerard Pique explains the best way to stop Manchester City’s Erling Haaland from scoring.
Former Barcelona defender Gerard Pique has provided insight into stopping Manchester City’s Erling Haaland.
The former Manchester United centre-back retired in the middle of last season but has remained involved in the sport, as he owns a football club in the Spanish lower divisions, FC Andorra, and currently runs a seven-a-side competition named Kings League.
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Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola explained his frantic exchange with Erling Haaland at half-time of their 3-0 win over Burnley.
Rampant Haaland
Erling set a number of goalscoring records in the Premier League last season, one of which was becoming the first player since the current format of the league to win the Golden Boot with 35 goals.
The Norwegian has resumed where he stopped last season, scoring a brace against Burnley in the opening Premier League fixture last night.
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Haaland played an integral role as Manchester City won the treble
Many defences have struggled to keep the former Salzburg striker contained, but Pique, who spent over a decade at the top of the profession, gives tips on how to cope with Haaland’s devastating abilities.
What Pique said about stopping Haaland
The Kosmos executive, in a conversation with Rio Ferdinand, whom he shared a dressing room with at Manchester United, explained how best to play against a player of Haaland’s quality.
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Gerard Pique consoles Rio Ferdinand after Barcelona beat Manchester United in the Champions League final || Gettyimages
Pique theorised that the 22-year-old’s potency is in areas in the penalty box, suggesting that he is not as effective outside the area.
The former Barcelona man said one has to limit Haaland’s presence in the box, believing that keeping him away from the penalty area reduces his effectiveness.
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“Haaland for me is a guy that in the box is a killer. Touch a ball and he can score goals. So you have to try to keep him outside the box. This is very difficult because he’s playing in a team like Manchester City that you are in the box all the time.”
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