“Liverpool’s funeral”, “We are winning it” – Manchester City fans back player to score hat-trick for them during Community Shield showdown
Manchester City fans have expressed their confidence in new signing Erling Haaland ahead of their Community Shield clash against Liverpool. The two teams will clash at the King Power Stadium in Leicester today, July 30.
The Cityzens are aiming for their third victory in this fixture in the last five years. Pep Guardiola has named an incredibly strong starting lineup for the encounter.
Ruben Dias captains the side which sees Jack Grealish and Haaland start upfront after combining excellently in their most recent pre-season fixture.
TEAM NEWS 
🔵 TEAM NEWS 🔵
XI | Ederson, Walker, Dias (C), Ake, Cancelo, Rodrigo, Bernardo, De Bruyne, Mahrez, Haaland, Grealish
SUBS | Ortega Moreno, Phillips, Stones, Gundogan, Alvarez, Foden, Mbete, Palmer, Wilson-Esbrand
#ManCity | @HaysWorldwide https://t.co/CqlGvcp3CQ
The game in Leicester will be Haaland's official debut following his blockbuster transfer from Borussia Dortmund earlier in the summer. He scored 86 goals in 89 appearances in two and a half seasons at the German giants.
Expectations are incredibly high for the 22-year-old forward upon his arrival. Needless to say, Manchester City fans were incredibly excited to see their new striker start against Liverpool.
Before the game, Sky Blue supporters took to Twitter to express their confidence for the game and extend their recent good record against Jurgen Klopp's side:
@ManCity @HaysWorldwide Liverpools funeral https://t.co/2RazobS0ck
@ManCity @HaysWorldwide WE ARE COOKING https://t.co/wJ8zIu6Dfl
@ManCity @HaysWorldwide We are winning it all!!! https://t.co/1Kl8n5x9Wu
@ManCity @HaysWorldwide haaland hatrick
@ManCity @HaysWorldwide HAALAND HATRICK
@ManCity @HaysWorldwide HAALAND ERA BEGINS https://t.co/hAO1adkQVP
@ManCity @HaysWorldwide Haalandddd suiiii
Erling Haaland "ready" to face Liverpool, says Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola
For several seasons now, Pep Guardiola has played without a centre-forward, which makes the Erling Haaland purchase all the more fascinating.
A world-class number 9 may be the missing piece of the puzzle for City as they aim to win their first ever Champions League title. However, their manager is refusing to look too far ahead.
When asked if he felt Haaland was ready to face Liverpool, Guardiola claimed (as per The Mail):
"He is ready to play. He feels good. When I spoke with him over the last couple of days, he feels a few little niggles but he can train and move. At the end of August, he will be better than now. Now we have one game a week, with more training. [Haaland and fellow new striker Julian Alvarez] have the special sense, smell, quality to score a goal."
He added:
"If we play good football, create a lot of chances, put the ball close to the box... If we do that, we know Erling and Julian have this incredible talent to score goals. But they will not do it alone. We have to help them."
Our line-up for today’s #CommunityShield meeting with @ManCity 📋