Istanbul: Star striker Erling Haaland believes Manchester City’s UEFA Champions League triumph cemented Pep Guardiolas reputation as one of the great managers and he described City boss as the ‘best coach in world football’.
With a 1-0 victory over Inter Milan, thanks to Rodrigo’s strike midway through the second half, City were crowned European champions for the first time Saturday night and they also secured the Treble, with Guardiola becoming the first men’s manager in history to achieve the feat on more than one occasion.
Guardiola has won 14 major trophies since joining the club in 2016. A collection comprising five Premier League titles, two FA Cups, four League Cups, one Champions League and two Community Shields.
“It’s such a big game, the pressure is unbelievable, you all know that. To work with Pep is really special. We have a good relationship and he’s helped me a lot. I look forward to developing even more.
I’m still young, I have a lot of years left. To be getting trained by him every day, the best coach in the world, it’s a good place to be,” Haaland was quoted as saying by the club’s website.
Reflecting on the Champions League title win, the City striker admitted the achievement exceeded all of his expectations at such a young age.
“Unbelievable. In my wildest dreams I would never think of this as a 22-year-old me to be honest. But it shows that it’s possible for a guy from a small town in Norway. This also gives, I think, motivation to other young people in my same kind of situation playing football in the indoor hall in my hometown,” Haaland said.
“We have to defend what we achieved this season. That’s how it works. In a month, two months everything is forgotten and we have to attack it again,” he added.
Haaland was the top scorer in the competition this season managing 12 goals and one assist, registering five of his goals in the group stage with the remainder coming in the knockout stages.
The 22-year-old ended the 2022/23 season with 52 goals in 53 games in all competitions. Apart from his feats in the Champions League, the Norwegian struck 36 league goals for City, breaking the previous Premier League record set by Andy Cole and Alan Shearer.
He became the first player in the English top flight to score 50 goals in a season in all competitions since 1931 as City scooped the league and FA Cup, before completing an historic treble by overcoming Inter in the Champions League final.
IANS