Manchester City coach Pep Guardiola said - today, Friday - that Erling Haaland is not to blame for not being able to leave a mark in recent matches, stressing that the Norwegian striker's colleagues should communicate with him more.
Haaland scored 32 goals in all competitions during an impressive first season in England, but has scored only once in his last 6 matches with City.
Haaland (22 years old) was absent from Leipzig, specifically in the Champions League, and hit the goal once after touching the ball only 22 times.
"It's our fault," Guardiola told a news conference on Friday ahead of a visit to Bournemouth in the English Premier League.
He explained, "Erling was good throughout the season. There are no specific measures. I do not need statistics or numbers and I know exactly what I want. One second after the match ends, I know if he is influential or not, and if he needs to interfere more in the game or not."
He added, "It certainly depends on us. We must cooperate more with him. The striker is the most difficult position on the field, one person is surrounded by two defenders, and in the case of Erling, control increases .. It is good for him to feel frustrated, I am also frustrated, happiness is exaggerated."
And it seemed that City took the lead from Arsenal by winning at the Emirates Stadium last week, but it wasted two points against Nottingham Forest in the next match, so that its London rivals regained the summit.
Arsenal are two points ahead of City now, but Guardiola indicated that Manchester United entered the competition without specifying his name.
He continued, "When I got here everyone warned me that the competition here is not like Spain or Germany, welcome to Britain, unfortunately it was a two-horse race but now finally more have joined the race."
The Spanish coach said that midfielder Kevin De Bruyne, who missed the visit to Leipzig, may return to play against Bournemouth after recovering, but it is likely that defenders John Stones and Emeric Laporte will continue to be absent.