Pep Guardiola has opened up on what he said to Erling Haaland on the pitch after Man City needed a late goal to beat Leeds United on Saturday.Â
City started quickly at Eastlands when Phil Foden scored the opener inside the first minute. Josip Gvardiol doubled their lead midway through the first half from a corner.
Leeds fought back in the second half, pulling one back through Dominic Calvert-Lewin shortly after the restart. Lukas Nmecha then levelled matters when he scored the rebound off his saved penalty.
But Fodne popped up in added time to rescue victory for the hosts, firing the ball through a crowd of defenders to secure a 3-2 win and all three points.
Guardiola explained that Leeds’ halftime changes gave his team problems after the interval. “After Daniel [Farke] changed shape, long balls to Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Lukas Nmecha running behind, it was always a struggle,” he told BBC Sport.
“That emotion is part of the football. We had the chances and at the end finally we found our goal.”
Guardiola reveals what he said to Haaland after Leeds win
The game was one of Haaland’s quietest since joining City, taking just one shot all game and that didn’t come until the 88th minute. Guardiola tried to soothe his striker’s disappointment at the full-time whistle after failing to net his 100th goal for the club.
“He’ll do it next game,” Guardiola said. “Just we talk about rest. He has a huge body. Minutes, minutes, in that moment you’re fresh. Rest [is] not just the legs [pointing to his head]. It’s not like Phil or Jeremy, they can rest. Erling is a big man. We need him so much.”
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