Roy Keane has intensified his recent criticism of Erling Haaland, the striker for Manchester City.
Roy Keane has doubled down on his Erling Haaland verdict
Erling Haaland has come under fire recently, but Roy Keane has defended his choice to compare the striker to a League Two player. Jamie Carragher has also expressed his agreement that the forward’s overall play is below what is necessary.
After moving from Borussia Dortmund to the Etihad in 2022, the 23-year-old scored 52 goals in his first season in England to lead Pep Guardiola’s team to a historic Premier League, FA Cup, and Champions League treble.
Though the Norwegian’s season in the Premier League has been a little more difficult, Roy Keane likened his overall play to that of a “League Two player” following City’s 0-0 draw with Arsenal on March 31.
And in keeping with his harsh criticism of Haaland, former Manchester United captain Keane has now stated that the striker’s overall play is “nowhere near good enough” to match Manchester City’s caliber.
“I don’t know what the big deal is, I give Erling Haaland praise every week, I give Manchester City praise, and I think he’s an amazing striker,” Keane said in an interview with the Stick to Football podcast.
“However, he plays more like a League Two player overall. I’m relieved that you disagree with me because I don’t expect everyone to.
“He never plays close to his potential on a weekly basis. I said that he was the best striker and goal scorer. He is the world’s best striker and goal scorer when it comes to link-up play, laying the ball off, and occasionally giving teammates options that they don’t take. But when it comes to other aspects of his game, he plays like a League Two player.
“Although Arsenal did a good job of containing the game throughout, the match against them was difficult, I don’t think what I said was particularly significant overall.
“He’s a young player and he will improve, and I guarantee you that Pep Guardiola sits with his staff on everything and say that he needs to do more, specifically when he’s not getting of chances or loads of goals.”
In agreement with Keane’s evaluation of Haaland, fellow Sky Sports analyst Carragher stated that the forward has previously struggled to participate in a match against a Premier League title rival. They drew a blank last month against the Gunners.
“Erling Haaland is a fantastic goal scorer, but there are moments when there is a discrepancy between the two,” Carragher continued.
The problem with Haaland, in my opinion, is that he doesn’t give a damn about anything other than his game. He was asked to actually play deeper and more involved in midfield during a period of time last season by Pep Guardiola, but he looked a little uncomfortable and I don’t think he was interested.
“I think he doesn’t care about it because of the way Manchester City plays. They have so many players who can play the link up play, like Bernardo Silva, Phil Foden, and Kevin De Bruyne. I believe that if he doesn’t score, you can’t tell if he’s playing well, as I recall from his season-ending performance at Anfield.
