Last night, Manchester City and Arsenal played a stalemate at the Etihad Stadium. The title race took a new turn as both sides failed to dominate. However, the aftermath saw negative attention being directed towards Erling Haaland, who is being slammed for his ‘general play‘ by none other than Roy Keane. But the Norwegian superstar quickly responded with a 9-word message full of optimism. 

Hours after the match, the City striker took to Instagram and posted three pictures in action in last night’s match. He also wrote a caption saying, “We’ve done it once, we can do it again!” Despite firing blanks and his side ending the match with a draw, Haaland exhibits confidence that his side will bounce back in further games. Unfortunately, it was yet another match where the former Borussia Dortmund man was nowhere to be seen. Haaland found himself tightly marked by the formidable Gabriel, leaving him little space to operate. Even though he dropped deeper to contribute to the build-up play, he missed a golden chance late in the game with an attempted shot that missed the mark.

The 23-year-old struggled to connect with a bouncing ball near the back post. However, he wasn’t the only one failing to perform at his best. Phil Foden’s contribution was notably lacking, leading to his substitution just after the hour mark. Despite the introduction of substitutes Jack Grealish and Jeremy Doku, providing City with an advantage, they were unable to capitalize. This result means City has now been unable to defeat either Arsenal or fellow title contenders Liverpool in their four encounters this season. 

While this message from Haaland might provide respite to fans, it may not convince Roy Keane, who had rather salty words for the striker.

Roy Keane claims Erling Haaland needs to improve his ‘all-round’ game

Following the match, Roy Keane didn’t spare Erling Haaland for being absent against Arsenal on the pitch. Speaking for Sky Sports, the Manchester United icon said, “He’s almost like a League Two player. The levels of his general play is so poor. And not just today, I think his general [play], his living, stuff off, headers, or whatever it might be.” While Keane believes that front-of-the-goal situations make the Norwegian the ‘best in the world,’ a player of his quality must improve his ‘poor‘ general play. 

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“That’s the way I look at him. His general play has to improve and it will do over the next few years. There is being a brilliant striker, fantastic, but he has to improve his all-round game,” concluded the Irishman. These words will certainly bring discontent to Haaland, who will be looking to respond to his critics in the next match. On the other hand, taking this advice in a constructive way might be beneficial for Haaland, helping him to prove his striking abilities even better.

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