Erling Haaland's football ability - is he really a League Two player?
- Roy Keane described Erling Haaland as 'like a League Two player' in regards to general play
- Man City striker is one of the world's most prolific scorers but struggles with other aspects
- Assessing Haaland's other attributes and why he struggles in some games
By Sean Walsh
It's probably fair to say that Manchester United legend and Sky Sports pundit Roy Keane was not impressed with Erling Haaland's performance in Manchester City's 0-0 draw with Arsenal on Sunday.
"The levels of his general play is so poor," Keane said of the Norwegian post-match. "Not just today, I think his laying stuff off, headers, whatever it might be - in front of goal he's the best in the world - but for his general play for such a player it is so poor...he has to improve that.
"He's almost like a League Two player, that's the way I look at him. His general play has to improve, and it will do over the next few years."
It's time to address the elephant in the room - is Haaland's general play really that bad? Is he really as awful as a League Two player?
Finishing
Right, this clearly isn't Haaland's problem. Let's make this clear. 236 club goals in 288 appearances - including 81 in 88 for City alone - make that pretty obvious.
He has his human moments - that skied effort from just two yards out against United a few weeks ago lingers in the memory - but finishing is Haaland's key strength.
First touch
For someone of Haaland's clean and sharp technical ability, he probably should have a better first touch, but it's hardly a significant weakness of his.
After all, his great flexibility means he can bring the ball down in ways even the most agile of gymnasts would only dream of.
Heading
Ah, a first point of contention.
Haaland stands at a rather sizeable 6ft4, yet only 22 of his 288 goals have come with his head.
Remember that remark about his gangly flexibility? It's almost as if this encourages him to try and find the net at ridiculous angles and degrees with his feet rather than just go with his noggin.
Hold-up play
Imagine Haaland in a Sam Allardyce team. Imagine Haaland at West Ham. Playing with his back to goal with that frame and that physical potential? Phwoar, what a unit.
That's not how his development has been handled. Instead, he has almost solely been required to play right on the last line and find space in the box.
You can't argue with the results and statistics, but this route has definitely impacted his ability to bring others into play despite his impressive assist numbers.
Movement
Yeah, you don't really want to have to defend Haaland when he has any smidgen of space to get himself into.
Haaland can get snuffed out of games for sure, but this is largely due to the opposition packing the box. It's not to do with his expert movement and poacher instincts.
What's the problem?
Haaland's freakish penchant for scoring in the right circumstances obviously makes his general play look worse, but it's not the main issue with his ability as a striker.
Instead, it's more to do with not making himself as much of a nuisance as he should in those odd games where he gets marked out. City will face plenty of deep blocks, but there shouldn't be any reason for someone of Haaland's stature, quickness or movement to barely get a sniff - he has the tools to do everything in the box.
Who's up for Pep Guardiola getting Haaland on a target man training programme?
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