Haaland on pace to surpass Messi and Ronaldo's best seasons. Is that good for Man City?

Back erstwhile Barcelona were redefining the mode the athletics was played astatine the highest level successful the aboriginal 2010s, their manager attempted to explicate his team's attack successful what seemed similar governmental terms.

"We play leftist football," Pep Guardiola said.

But it wasn't that helium was utilizing tiki taka to marque the lawsuit for the Green New Deal oregon cosmopolitan wellness care. (That would beryllium ironic, fixed however Guardiola and a fig of his players got successful occupation for not paying their taxes.) Rather, helium was trying to verbalize what made his squad truthful antithetic from their competitors: "Everyone does everything."

His goalkeeper was 1 of his champion passers. His wingers defended similar antiaircraft midfielders. His antiaircraft midfielders had the adjacent power of classical attacking midfielders. His attacking midfielders scored tons of goals. His strikers facilitated the cardinal runs of his wingers. The shot was ever Barcelona's due to the fact that everyone felt comfy with it, nary substance wherever they were connected the field. This was Guardiola Ball.

It surely was astatine 1 clip -- but it isn't anymore. After 4 years of stylistic compromise, it definite seems similar Guardiola's Manchester City person yet go Erling Haaland's team. When the gigantic, one-dimensional, goal-scoring Norwegian archetypal signed with City backmost successful the summertime of 2022, determination astatine slightest existed the anticipation that the then-22-year-old would yet larn however to beryllium a much progressive subordinate successful Guardiola's preferred, perpetually shifting possession machine.

If anything, though, it's gone successful the different direction. So acold this season, Haaland lone does 1 thing, and past everyone other does each the different things. Manchester City person go a one-man squad successful a mode that would've been unthinkable to anyone watching Barcelona backmost successful 2010. But it's not lone that -- they've go a one-man squad successful a mode we haven't truly seen from any squad since 2010.

With 11 goals done 8 matches successful the Premier League and Champions League, it's moving for Haaland -- but tin it enactment for Manchester City?

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Why Haaland is amended than ever before

Through six games successful the Premier League, Haaland is presently averaging 1.42 goals per 90 minutes.

One mode to contextualize that: Only six Premier League clubs -- Liverpool, Arsenal, Chelsea, Tottenham, Brentford, and Brighton -- are averaging much goals per 90 minutes than Haaland.

Another way: When Haaland broke the Premier League goal-scoring grounds 3 seasons ago, helium averaged a measly 1.17 goals per 90 minutes. His vocation mean astatine City is 0.98, portion his mean astatine Borussia Dortmund was 1.04.

The lone numbers that truly comparison to what he's doing close present are the ones helium enactment up successful his half-season with FC Salzburg successful Austria. He averaged 1.47 goals per 90 minutes, but that was for a ascendant squad that scored 110 goals successful a league wherever nary 1 other got much than 69. He's doing it to...