Erling Haaland has never scored against this English club since his arrival at Man City shirt

Erling Haaland has never scored against this English club since his arrival at Man City shirt

There’s just one single English side that have managed to keep Erling Haaland out since his Manchester City arrival – it might shock you

 

Only one English side has managed to keep Erling Haaland at bay in a City shirt

The Terminator. Daemon. Goal Machine. None of Erling Haaland’s growing list of nicknames provoke thoughts of a breezy afternoon for opposing centre-backs.

 

And if they’re not intimidated by his branding, they certainly will be by his record. Now up to 135 outings for Manchester City, he’s already smashed home 118 goals — numbers that quite frankly would be difficult to keep pace with on a video game.

 

So far there’s just one English side that have managed to keep Haaland at bay since he arrived in Manchester in 2022 – their identity will probably shock you.

 

The one English side Erling Haaland couldn’t score against

 

‘Stay humble, eh?’ – Haaland was certainly kept down-to-earth against this Championship defence

Nine against West Ham United, six against Manchester United, four each against Arsenal and Tottenham. Haaland – ranked at no.3 in FourFourTwo’s list of the best players in the world right now – has conquered almost every English side he’s faced since he landed at the Etihad Stadium.

 

All but one. That side? The unbreakable unit that is Plymouth Argyle.

 

 

Miron Muslic couldn’t keep every City player out, but he did manage to quell the threat of Haaland

Stats gathered by The Argyle Analyst on X reveal that the Pilgrims are the only English side that Haaland has faced for City that he hasn’t managed to score past.

 

They join an exclusive continental club that only Inter Milan, Juventus, Sporting, Red Star Belgrade and Argyle can boast of being in.

 

Now, some qualification is needed here. Haaland did only play 30 minutes against Plymouth in their recent FA Cup tie – one which the south-coast side lost 3-1 – and still managed to provide an assist. The Norway international has, of course, played many more minutes against most of the English sides he’s faced.

 

Nevertheless, a stat is a stat, and it’s one nobody can take away from the Pilgrims. So long as they don’t draw City in a cup next year, that is.

 

 

Haaland has a fair few years left in Manchester to try and break this stat

In FourFourTwo’s opinion, keeping out a half-injured striker for 30 minutes may not be the club’s biggest claim to fame, but it’s a great stat.

 

And, given that Plymouth are languishing at the wrong end of the Championship table, it may be a long time until the two meet again. With Haaland’s recent almost-10-year contract, there’s only a decade left to properly cement the record.

 

Haaland is worth €200m, according to Transfermarkt. City take on Nottingham Forest next, when Premier League action returns this weekend.

 

 

Pep Guardiola was not pleased with one aspect of Manchester City’s win over Plymouth – now the FA have stepped in

 

The Mitre Ultimax Pro Emirates FA Cup 20224/25 match ball

The FA Cup 2024/25 match ball, manufactured by Mitre, that Pep Guardiola has criticised

The Football Association have hit back at Pep Guardiola after the Manchester City manager’s ‘not proper’ complaint about the quality of the Mitre-manufactured footballs used in the FA Cup.

 

Keeping in the hunt for the historic piece of silverware – just – Man City came from behind to win 3-1 vs Plymouth Argyle, the Championship outfit that had been responsible for eliminating Liverpool in the previous round.

 

Maksym Talovierov had put Argyle ahead against the run of play, but strikes from Nico O’Reilly and Kevin de Bruyne ensured the heavy favourites were put into the hat for the quarter-finals. But their goals were a fraction of only three of nine shots on target managed, and those nine on target were an even more minuscule portion of 29 attempts overall.

 

READ MORE: ‘Great confidence’ – Richard Masters talks Premier League damage over Man City charges READ MORE: Erling Haaland gesture after Plymouth win speaks volumes for Man City star

As a result Guardiola complained about the quality of the football used, stating: “The ball is not proper. I’m sorry. For many years it’s happened in the FA Cup and Carabao Cup. I know it’s a business and they come to agreements, but the ball is not (good).

 

“You know how many shots went over the post? Not just Erling [Haaland]’s – look at other games. I’ve said it for many years. It’s the truth. The Champions League ball is exceptional, the Premier League is exceptional, this one is not good.”

 

This mirrored a rant by Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta about the Carabao Cup’s Puma-manufactured footballs, but like the English Football League on that occasion, the FA have come out with a staunch defence of their own partnership agreement.

 

“Mitre’s Ultimax Pro ball — used in the Emirates FA Cup and all other FA Competitions — has been tested in accordance with FIFA testing,” an FA spokesperson said in response to Guardiola’s comments.

 

“All footballs in the professional game are required to meet the FIFA Quality pro accreditation, and this ball delivers against all of the testing requirements. Alongside Mitre, we understand that preference is subjective.

 

 

“But we’re confident that the ball performs well. With over 350 goals scored in the knockout competition so far, it provides an exciting element to such a competitive tournament,” an FA Spokesperson has responded to Guardiola’s comments.

 

In the final-eight of the competition Man City were drawn an away tie at fellow Premier League side Bournemouth. Other matches in the round will be Fulham vs Crystal Palace, Preston North End vs Aston Villa and Brighton vs Ipswich or Nottingham Forest. With dates unconfirmed exactly as of now, thosewill be played on the weekend commencing March 28.

 

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