Man City boss hits back at Roy Keane after scathing Erling Haaland criticism

Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has hit back at Roy Keane following his criticism of Erling Haaland.

In his pundit role at the weekend on Sky Sports following City’s draw with fellow title challengers Arsenal, Keane praised Haaland’s record in front of goal but hit out at his all-round game, describing it as “almost like a League Two player”.

Ahead of tonight’s game with Aston Villa, Guaridola said: “I don’t agree with him, absolutely not. He’s the best striker in the world and he helped us to win what we won last season. Erling is exceptional. The reason we don’t create chances is not because of Erling. The standards that Erling has are unbelievable and everyone expects other things.

“There are games where he could be better but I knew during the game against Arsenal that the reason why we were not creating chances was not because of Erling. We needed more presence in the box. If we had that Erling would have more space. It happens sometimes. If you want to score goals, bring a lot of players to the opponent keeper, it is as simple as that.”

On criticism generally, Guardiola added: “If you don’t want to accept that as a football player, you have to dedicate yourself to another job. When you are a public figure, you have to accept it. That’s why when you are in contract talks, you have to ask for a lot of money to accept those moments.

“I’m surprised it comes from former players. With journalists I can understand because they have never been on the pitch but the former players is always a surprise.”