Erling Haaland continues to soar at Manchester City and set the bar higher on Tuesday with his five goals in one match, but coach Pep Guardiola was still disappointed — not with anything related to performance but for the fact that Hollywood star Julia Roberts came to Manchester but didn’t watch his team.
Haaland scored a record-equalling five goals in City’s 7-0 rout of Leipzig as the Premier League giants stormed into the Champions League quarterfinals with an 8-1 aggregate win.
But Guardiola’s mind was preoccupied with something else.
Oscar winner Roberts, the City manager explained, is one of his three idols, along with Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods. But on a visit to the UK, she chose to watch Manchester United, rather than Guardiola’s City team, which has won four Premier League titles in five years.
“She came in the period where we were better than United, in these four or five years,” he said. “And she went to visit Man United. She didn’t come to see us. That’s why this is…even if I win the Champions League (it) will not be compared for the fact that Julia Roberts came to Manchester and didn’t come to see us.”
Guardiola’s comments provided a digression from Haaland’s goal-scoring feats on a night when he looked like the man to finally end City’s search for a first Champions League title.
Haaland scored a record-equalling five goals in City’s 7-0 rout of Leipzig as the Premier League giants stormed into the Champions League quarterfinals with an 8-1 aggregate win.
But Guardiola’s mind was preoccupied with something else.
Oscar winner Roberts, the City manager explained, is one of his three idols, along with Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods. But on a visit to the UK, she chose to watch Manchester United, rather than Guardiola’s City team, which has won four Premier League titles in five years.
“She came in the period where we were better than United, in these four or five years,” he said. “And she went to visit Man United. She didn’t come to see us. That’s why this is…even if I win the Champions League (it) will not be compared for the fact that Julia Roberts came to Manchester and didn’t come to see us.”
Guardiola’s comments provided a digression from Haaland’s goal-scoring feats on a night when he looked like the man to finally end City’s search for a first Champions League title.
He is a goal machine who produced a statement performance to fire City into the quarterfinals.
“I’m blurry in my head. I remember shooting but not thinking,” Haaland said after he matched Lionel Messi and Luiz Adriano by scoring five in a single Champions League game.
Haaland needed only 25 games to score 30 goals, surpassing the record held by former Manchester United and Real Madrid striker Ruud van Nistelrooy, who reached that benchmark in 34.
At 22 years, 236 days old, Haaland is also the youngest player to score 30 Champions League goals — beating Kylian Mbappé, who had broken Messi’s record.
Haaland has now scored 39 goals this season in all competitions.
(With agency inputs)
