"He's still got loads of room for improvement" - Manchester United coach makes honest claim about Manchester City star Erling Haaland
Manchester United's attacking coach Benni McCarthy has made a bold claim about Manchester City striker Erling Haaland. The trainer believes that the Norwegian still has a lot of room for improvement despite his incredible exploits in front of goal in recent months.
Erling Haaland was in a league of his own in the Premier League last season. He shattered the division's record for the most goals scored in a single season when he bagged an unbelievable 36 goals in 35 appearances.
Over the course of the term, the Manchester City striker recorded a whopping 52 goals and nine assists to his name in 53 games across all competitions. He put his name among some of the most prolific forwards in the history of the beautiful game.
However, despite his massive numbers in front of goal, Benni McCarthy insists the Manchester City superstar isn't a finished product yet. According to him, Haaland still needs to develop his game in certain areas and he would've loved to help him if he were on the other side of Manchester. He said (via Express UK):
"If he was to sign for Man United, then hell yeah. I would love to contribute but I don't see that ever happening. He's still got loads of room for improvement. I observe and analyse a lot of attacking players, sometimes I just feel he can improve his game a little bit, especially when defenders try to mark him out of the game."
McCarthy went on to cite Erling Haaland's struggles in his duel with Real Madrid defender Antonio Rudiger last season. He explained why Haaland needs to work on adjusting his game against different defenders.
"I saw gainst Real Madrid, Antonio Rudiger was so tight on him and he ended up not having a solution, even though he's such a strong and powerful player. He's got speed, heading ability, but you need to adjust your game to play against different kinds of defenders."
It will be interesting to see if the 23-year-old Norwegian hitman manages to overcome his perceived limitations and become even more prolific for Manchester City in future.
Erling Haaland off to explosive start this season
Following his treble-winning outing last term, Erling Haaland has returned to doing what he does best this season. The striker continues to be a nightmare to opposition defenders in the Premier League with his amazing numbers up front.
So far, he's recorded eight goals and one assist to his name in six appearances for Manchester City in the English top flight. He currently leads the goalscoring charts and is already in with a shout to win the Golden Shoe for the second straight year.
Haaland will be in action once again when Manchester City go head-to-head with Wolverhampton Wanderers in the Premier League this weekend. It remains to be seen how many goals he'll score at the Molineux Stadium on Saturday (September 30).