Manchester City coach Pep Guardiola spoke about the brilliance of his striker Haaland and the difficulty of facing Aston Villa, tomorrow, Saturday.
Guardiola began the press conference by talking about the importance of the Akanji deal by saying, “We have 4 great defenders, but at the same time Laporte suffers from a strong injury and will not return for a month and a half.”
He noted, “We had an opportunity to sign a defender who has one year left on his contract and has tremendous experience. He was perfect for what we wanted and was good at building play.”
Turning to deal with Haaland’s physical load, he said, “He is 22 years old, and therefore recovering well, things are more difficult at 32 years and not 22.”
On comparing Halland with the best players in the Premier League and Messi at the same age, he commented, “A month ago, Halland was a disaster for some, and now he will destroy everything. I don’t know what will happen tomorrow, not in two years. We are happy that the player has adapted.”
Looking at the pair of Alvarez and Halland, he explained, “The great strikers in my career are competing to score the most goals. We are happy with the club’s ability to include this duo.”
He commented on facing Aston Villa, “It is a dangerous match. I would have preferred the opponent to be in a better position at the table. It is always difficult to face Aston Villa, and that will be more difficult tomorrow. They have the quality and the coach.”
