Pep Guardiola has no doubt Erling Haaland will score goals for Manchester City but insists he does not care how many he gets.
The Premier League champions, who begin their title defence at West Ham on Sunday, secured the services of one of the most sought-after players in the world when Haaland's move from Borussia Dortmund was announced in June.
However, the Norwegian's debut did not go according to plan as he drew a blank in a 3-1 Community Shield loss to Liverpool.
Asked how many goals Haaland will score this season, Guardiola's response was initially jovial as he replied: "You are the guy who's going to ask me about Haaland at every press conference, right? Welcome to Manchester."
He added: "I don't know how many goals he's going to score and I don't care.
"We are not going to win for Erling and we are not going to lose for Erling. He has to be himself. From what I've seen he's going to adapt quick.
"He played one week ago his first 90 minutes in five months. He's a big figure in terms of physicality and needs maybe more time to get in the best condition.
"If people have doubts he's going to score goals, he's going to score goals.
"The chances are always there. He's a good finisher, so just adapt the way he plays and we're going to do that to him.
"At the same time I don't have any doubts it's going to happen.
"The goals he's going to score, I don't care."
The schedule this term will present a new challenge as the Qatar World Cup falls in the middle of the campaign, taking place from November 21 to December 18.
Guardiola believes there are effectively two seasons within one, and acknowledged there is precious little room for error as City seek to fend off the persistent threat of Liverpool and other contenders.
"It's like two Premier Leagues in one Premier League," he said. "There's one Premier League before the World Cup. You cannot win the Premier League [before the World Cup] but you can lose it.
"It's not just Liverpool. They will not drop much, so this is why you have to start well. We won two Premier Leagues being just one point ahead of Liverpool. That means we are able to win 11, 12, 15 or 14 games in a row if we can do it. Liverpool as well.
"We proved ourselves we can do it in the past, and if you can do it in the past you can do it in the present. I have the feeling the rivals will not drop many points, we know.
"I have the feeling since we arrived... the team I rely on them a lot and I see in every training session that the guys are still out there. How they train every day. That makes me feel, okay, we'll see what happens.
"I think we're still there, we'll be there, and that's the most important thing. When I see the relations they have in the locker room and the incredible focus they have in training sessions, what we are doing so far is really good.
"We'll see what happens in the good moments and the low moments in the season, how we react and how we behave."
Kevin De Bruyne and Pep Guardiola: Champions League is City dream and obsession
Pep Guardiola and Kevin De Bruyne admit winning the Champions League has become both a dream and an obsession for Manchester City.
City stand on the brink of glory as they prepare to face Inter Milan in the final in Istanbul on Saturday.
Guardiola’s side are strong favourites for a game that could not only see them crowned European champions for the first time but complete the treble.
The Premier League winners are hoping to put years of frustration behind them after several near misses in their pursuit of the prize they covet most.
De Bruyne gave his feelings on the matter when he was asked if victory was a “dream” or an “obsession” as City held a pre-match press conference at the Ataturk Olympic Stadium on Friday.
“Maybe both, it depends who you ask,” said the Belgium playmaker. “Every professional player wants to win the Champions League and be on top.
“If you can win the Champions League, you’ve reached one of the biggest things you can.”
“To compete every year is amazing, and I’ve been able to compete against the best, but we’ve got a chance to close that if we are good enough.”
City have reached the knockout stages of the tournament in each of Guardiola’s seven seasons as manager but they are yet to fulfil their ambition.
Their runners-up finish two seasons ago, when they were beaten by Chelsea in the final, is the closest they have come.
Guardiola, who won the competition twice as Barcelona boss, said: “It’s absolutely a dream, yes.
“To achieve things you always have to have the correct proportion of obsession and desire.
“It’s a positive word for the desire and will to win it. It is of course a dream for us.”
City’s outstanding season has been fuelled by the goalscoring of Erling Haaland.
The prolific Norwegian has netted 52 goals in an outstanding first campaign at the Etihad Stadium.
Haaland admitted this week has was brought to City to win the Champions League and Guardiola – whose two previous successes came in tandem with Lionel Messi at Barcelona – hopes he proves the final piece of the jigsaw.
Asked what he would advise managers hoping to emulate his achievements, Guardiola said: “Have good players – have Messi, have Haaland. This is my success. I’m not joking.
“Every manager who has had success has had strong institutions and exceptional players. I’ve never scored a goal as a manager.”
Haaland actually goes into the game having scored just once in his last seven outings but this is not a concern for Guardiola.
“I don’t have doubts,” he said. “If you have doubts about Erling scoring you are a very lonely person.
“Tomorrow he will be ready to help us win the Champions League.”
Haaland has formed a potent attacking partnership with De Bruyne.
De Bruyne was cheekily asked at the press conference if it had been “love at first sight” between the pair.
De Bruyne said: “No. I’m happy with my wife!”
Elaborating more, he added: “You have a feeling with a player and I understand what he wants. It clicked really well. He’s scored at an incredible rate and settled really easily.”
De Bruyne has been chasing Champions League success with City since 2015.
He said: “We have been consistent, we have been good enough, but we need to find a way to win the first one. It would be immense for the club and the fans, something amazing.”
We love the pressure – Ruben Dias confident Man City will thrive in final
Ruben Dias is confident Manchester City will thrive on the pressure in the Champions League final.
The City defender has no doubt his team-mates will step up to the challenge as they face Inter Milan in Istanbul on Saturday.
City have already claimed the domestic double after an outstanding late-season charge and they now stand just one win away from becoming European champions for the first time.
Dias said: “We love the pressure, we love it. The pressure will make you run faster, jump higher, be more focused.
“That’s what these kind of games need and we need to embrace it. We enjoy the moment and we know what it means to our club, the fans, our families and we never forget to enjoy it.”
After an inconsistent spell either side of the World Cup, City hit form in the spring to reel in Arsenal at the top of the Premier League and retain their title.
They then powered through to the Champions League final with stunning victories over Bayern Munich and holders Real Madrid.
After beating rivals Manchester United to win the FA Cup last weekend, momentum seems very much to be on their side.
Dias said: “I’ve been saying this for a long time – when we get to February and the decisions come up, that’s the sweet spot.
“You can see the character of a team when you arrive on these stages, you can see whether a team wants to move forward or starts hiding.
“Since that moment we’ve been showing up every time and tomorrow will be no different. It’s another time for all of us to step up to the occasion.”
Pep Guardiola and Kevin De Bruyne: Winning Champions League is Man City’s dream
Pep Guardiola and Kevin De Bruyne admit winning the Champions League is both a dream and an obsession for Manchester City.
City are bidding to win the competition for the first time, and complete the treble, as they face Inter Milan in the final in Istanbul on Saturday.
Guardiola’s side have dominated the domestic scene in recent years but repeatedly fallen short chasing Europe’s top prize, the one the club covets most highly.
City playmaker De Bruyne and manager Guardiola both spoke at a pre-match press conference at the Ataturk Olympic Stadium on Friday.
De Bruyne was asked first if he felt victory was a “dream” or an “obsession”.
The Belgium international said: “Maybe both. It depends who you ask. Every professional player wants to win the Champions League and be on top.
“If you can win the Champions League, you’ve reached one of the biggest things you can.”
Guardiola was in agreement when asked the same question.
The Catalan, who guided Barcelona to victory in the competition twice, has taken City into the knockout stages seven times but their runner-up finish in 2021 is the closest they have come to success.
“Absolutely it’s a dream,” he said. “To achieve things you have to have correct portion of obsession and desire, it’s a positive word, and willingness to try to do it, but of course it’s a dream.”
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
