Erling Haaland is on the verge of rounding up what has been quite a remarkable first year on English shores. The Manchester City striker could win the Champions League this weekend, after breaking records in the Premier League this term by finding the net 36 times in 35 appearances.
Ahead of Saturday’s Hollywood clash against Inter Milan in Istanbul, the Norwegian international talked to Rio Ferdinand on his Between The Lines show on BT Sport. Haaland made a number of interesting statements during the episode, some of which could relate to a certain Darwin Núñez on Merseyside.
At one stage, Ferdinand questioned the 22-year-old about his lack of touches despite his goals, but Haaland provided quite the response. “Look at the players we have; Grealish, De Bruyne, Bernardo. They are the ones who should contact the ball all of the time, I should not be interrupting them too much. I should be in the box, scoring with my first touch.”
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His words offer an insight into how he’s been deployed since moving to the Etihad Stadium. Pep Guardiola has appreciated his skillset in Manchester by creating a platform for him to do what he’s good at. He has obviously been instructed to almost stay away from the ball until he can deliver shots on goal.
Indeed, only four players in the Premier League averaged fewer touches per 90 minutes than Haaland this term in Jamie Vardy, Callum Wilson, Brennan Johnson and Diego Costa, and it is worth noting that none of those players represented a team as dominant in possession as Manchester City.
Haaland is a poacher for Guardiola, but Núñez — despite possessing a comparable skillset — has been used differently since his own move from Benfica to Liverpool last summer for an initial fee of $81m (£64m/€75m). The two players are both tall and rapid, and they tend to attract chances like magnets, but they have been used differently at their respective clubs.
Jürgen Klopp has not maximized the qualities of Núñez yet. He’s fielded him on the flanks for the most part, and when he’s deployed him through the middle, he’s effectively been expected to play like Roberto Firmino by dropping deeper and linking with others in withdrawn spaces.
At times, Núñez has appeared somewhat rough around the edges with the ball in comparison to Firmino or even Cody Gakpo. He looks like the type of player who would benefit from a similar role to Haaland, becoming the tip of Liverpool’s spear by spending most of his time in the penalty box and staying away from the build-up.
Klopp could argue that he hasn’t had the players to empower Núñez in such a manner, but perhaps the recent signature of Alexis Mac Allister will help in that sense. Like Grealish, De Bruyne and Bernardo, the Argentine international is technical, shrewd and sensible in possession of the ball.
The 24-year-old, who was announced as Liverpool’s newest signing on Thursday afternoon, can provide the Reds with real composure on the field next term. His addition is just the start of Klopp’s rebuild this summer, but his qualities alone could offer a lot towards providing Liverpool with the necessary control to accommodate Núñez as a striker up front.
Guardiola’s usage of Haaland is the blueprint for Klopp to follow with Núñez, and Mac Allister could open up that possibility.