![]() It's certainly a compliment to the Clarets' manager but he has been determined to play such talk down. There was a standing ovation, a blast of 'here's to you Vincent Kompany' and then a warm embrace between the City manager and his former captain.Įver since the draw for this quarter-final was made, Guardiola has been telling anyone who would listen that Kompany is capable of replacing him. Kompany was always assured of a rapturous welcome back to the Etihad and his emergence from the tunnel before Guardiola was just that. But on this form, don't bet against them. City sent out a statement with their win against RB Leipzig in midweek but the draw for the quarter-final and semi-final has given them a difficult path, with Bayern Munich to come and then Chelsea or Real Madrid. The Champions League is the one Guardiola desperately wants. They are also now in the FA Cup semi-finals and you would only consider Manchester United as potential rivals for that trophy. Maybe that is because City are doing the hunting in the Premier League, chasing down league leaders Arsenal, but they have the advantage of a game against the Gunners at the Etihad to come. What does make this campaign different is that the conversation hasn't had the same volume as in previous years. Most City seasons reach March with talk of a treble or quadruple still going strong and this one is no exception. They didn't deserve the scale of this defeat on their first 30 minutes alone. Had they taken one it might have been a different game. That aggression led to a couple of errors from City in their half and some promising openings for the Championship leaders. They also took an aggressive man-marking approach in midfield, making it difficult for City to play out. Vincent Kompany is so wedded to some of Guardiola's principles that he told his players to calm down and keep possession when they couldn't find killer passes on the edge of the opposition area.īurnley pressed with intelligence and aggression from the off, identifying moments when it triggered a sudden rush to close down Stefan Ortega and the central defenders. That was not the way of the Clarets and maybe we should have expected it given the identity of the man in their technical area. Plenty of teams come here, defend their penalty area and show little inclination to engage City further up the pitch. There are Premier League teams who have shown considerably less ambition at the Etihad than Burnley did on Saturday evening. They have found their rhythm at the perfect time and the Premier League leaders must be feeling the breath on the back of their necks. If City keep this up then it's hard to see them dropping many more points between now and the end of May. The win at Arsenal in February was a statement to Mikel Arteta's side, one that they have responded to impressively, but the displays of the last few weeks must be sending shivers down spines in North London. There has been a reluctance all season to declare that City's 'issues' are behind them, but on the evidence of recent performances, they really are. Thirteen goals in two games, six straight wins and five successive clean sheets would suggest those days are behind us. They couldn't maintain performance levels and couldn't string wins together. It's not so long ago that City's inconsistency was being cited as the reason they wouldn't win the league this season. He could be the man to make the difference over the next two-and-a-half months. Haaland is the most exciting, thrilling and unique footballer in the world. He is scoring from inside the penalty area but his ability to find space, sniff out where the ball is going and finish with a ruthless streak that is beyond every other striker in world football is extraordinary. He doesn't need that many touches to hurt teams. Incredibly, his last 10 goals for the club have been scored with his first touch, including two penalties. One of the stats used to question Haaland's suitability for City this season has been his lack of touches. READ MORE: City player ratings vs Burnley He is getting chances at a startling rate and is finishing them clinically. The idea that he was making City worse, or was at the wrong club, must have been banished for good. This was hat-trick number six of the season. This is truly obscene stuff and after a relatively barren run of two goals in eight games he is now electric. A week ago he was out of form but he now has nine goals in his last 135 minutes of football. That is now 42 goals this season in 37 games. The statistics are not only plentiful, but they are also mind-boggling. If Manchester City are starting to find form as a collective then it is being powered by the magnificent Erling Haaland.
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