Rafael Van der Vaart: “Erling Haaland was bad against Real Madrid, the worst player on the pitch. If he doesn’t score, he’s useless. He’s very average on the ball. Man City needed a striker who can keep possession (hold-up play) & that wasn’t possible once. Even his teammates skipped him eventually”

3 comments

1. I have to disagree with Rafa here. He pulled away Rüdiger, our best defender from the other attackers. That’s hardly useless.

2. Are there any good strikers that can keep possession and win aerial duels? The only ones I can think of off the top of my head is Kane. It feels like they’re a dying breed. Even if Mbappé comes next year, he won’t exactly be a typical hold-up play striker either. He was miserable trying to play that role against Barca.

3. This narrative is laughable. His aura is so overwhelming that our whole defense gets focused on him leaving open spaces for people like Foden who now people think is some Messique figure when he is not. It’s all due to Halaand, He disappears while playing for England. The reason Halaand doesn’t get involved is because of the Bald God Pep, he does not want him to. Just go see Halaand at Dortmund, he is perfectly capable of this.

   Halaand was built to play for Madrid, and so was Mbappe. The quick, powerful, and explosive style of play is perfect for Real Madrid. But they might never play for Real Madrid which is unfortunate.