Erling Haaland issue solved in minutes - but Joao Cancelo exposes bigger Man City problem

Phil Foden, Ilkay Gundogan, Jeremy Doku and present Bernardo Silva. Manchester City person scored inside the opening 10 minutes successful each of their 4 Club World Cup games and nary of them person been scored by Erling Haaland.

City's No.9 would alternatively person the lion's share, yet portion of his struggles past play came from the information nary of his teammates could beryllium relied upon to score. Looking down from his 31 goals, Phil Foden with 10 was the lone different Blue to scope treble figures.

It wasn't conscionable a extremity occupation either, it was a show problem. Opposition teams learned that Haaland was the lone extremity menace and truthful adapted accordingly, marking him retired of the crippled assured successful the cognition that this would mean they kept a cleanable sheet; excessively often, they were right.

To ticker City successful the Club World Cup has been to gully a enactment successful the soil connected past play and commencement to observe a caller era. More than £275million of signings person been made successful 2025 and those players are already doing the occupation of providing much contention for places.

It tin lone beryllium a bully happening to spot City onslaught truthful slickly against Al Hilal successful the last-16 then, fixed however often they battled truthful unsuccessfully against antiaircraft teams past season. Multiple players crashing into the container helped to instrumentality the load from Haaland and astonishment opponents who had grown utilized to an overreliance connected the Norwegian.

Even erstwhile helium did score, it again pointed to an alternate root of goals. Haaland prodded successful a country arsenic Nathan Ake lurked arsenic the caller set-piece manager saw his banal emergence again.

If that was a large positive, the information that Haaland's extremity was connected an equaliser to marque it 2-2 volition person acrophobic City staff. Having looked successful power for truthful agelong successful this competition, they were undone by the elemental brilliance of erstwhile City defender Joao Cancelo.

Cancelo's shot crossed the container starring up to the archetypal was dangerous, portion his walk for the 2nd extremity was exquisite. From City's position it was each excessively elemental arsenic they were sliced unfastened with ease.

They saved the worst for other time, with Kalidou Koulibaly capable to caput location straight from a country to enactment Al Hilal backmost successful front. Scoring goals hasn't been an contented this tournament, but their defending bore each the hallmarks of the play that outgo them truthful dearly past season.

After being dumped retired of the contention successful the biggest upset truthful far, they person plentifulness of clip to deliberation astir that and marque definite immoderate positives from this tourney aren't outweighed by nagging issues.

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