Asianet NewsableAsianet Newsable

FA Community Shield 2022: Pep Guardiola issues Erling Haaland warning ahead of Liverpool tie

On Saturday, Manchester City and Liverpool face off in the 2022 FA Community Shield in Leicester. Pep Guardiola has warned Liverpool to watch out for City’s Erling Haaland.

FA Community Shield 2022: Pep Guardiola issues Erling Haaland warning ahead of Liverpool tie-ayh
Author
Leicester, First Published Jul 30, 2022, 1:45 PM IST

The English football season is a week away from kicking off. At the same time, it would all get underway with an intro, as the FA Community Sheild 2022 clash will be held between reigning English champion Manchester City and fellow English giants Liverpool at the King Power Stadium in Leicester on Saturday. The two teams have had their stints in the pre-season build-up. While the Cityzens won both pre-season games, The Reds have played four matches, winning and losing a couple each. Meanwhile, ahead of this intense clash, City head coach Pep Guardiola has warned Liverpool about the former’s new signing, Norwegian sensation Erling Haaland, who would be making his professional debut with the club on Saturday.

During the pre-match press conference on Friday, Guardiola confirmed, “He’s [Haaland] ready to play. And, the first impression as a guy is excellent. He’s a funny guy. He’s settled well with the team, and that is important. The good vibes in the locker room are more important than any advice or anything you can say. We try to get to know each other in training. We can see what we want to do and what we did in previous seasons. His quality will do the rest.”

ALSO READ: 'Sunday, the king plays' - Cristiano Ronaldo confirms his return date for Manchester United

“But, he [Haaland] will not do it alone. We have to help him, and the way to help him is to make good processes, offensively and defensively, and bring the most chances close to the box. And, after we have the feeling that he will score. But, if we play no good, if we play bad, he will not score goals, that’s for sure,” added Guardiola, reports The Mirror.

On the other hand, Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp quickly compared Haaland and The Reds’ new signing, Uruguayan striker Darwin Nunez. During the presser on Friday, he said, “We watched the Bayern game obviously, and it was not too different, but it was good, and Erling scored a Manchester City goal.”

“Like a square ball in the six-yard box, and that is so far it didn’t change a lot, they have the same problem we have as they are not used to Erling’s natural runs just as we are not used to Darwin’s raw runs yet. When Darwin offers a run, we give him the ball all the time, which is not helpful because often a guy who stretches the opponent is there to create space between the lines,” counted Klopp.

ALSO READ: Atletico Madrid puts Ronaldo links to rest; President Cerezo confirms end of transfer business

“I am pretty sure they will need time for Erling, but that doesn’t mean he cannot score early like how he did in the first game against Bayern. Most of the things look like last year, how they set up the press, how flexible they are in their possession, it is good, very, very good, but so far not real change is obvious,” Klopp finished.

Follow Us:
Download App:
  • android
  • ios