Inter Milan provided a blueprint for containing Manchester City’s goal machine Erling Haaland, successfully keeping him at bay despite his electric form this season.
Simone Inzaghi’s side managed to stifle not just Haaland, but many of City’s key players, resulting in a frustrating 0-0 draw in their Champions League showdown.
Jamie Carragher described Haaland’s performance as “quiet,” noting the 24-year-old striker’s inability to truly test Inter goalkeeper Yann Sommer during the match.
Haaland also missed the chance to match Cristiano Ronaldo’s record for being the fastest player to reach 100 goals (Ronaldo did it in 105 games for Real Madrid). Haaland, in his 104th game for City, failed to score, meaning he will need a goal in his next outing—against Arsenal in the Premier League—to equal the feat. Haaland has found the net in two of his four Premier League encounters with the Gunners, so he’ll be eager to add to his tally.
More than anything, Haaland may be frustrated with City’s inability to break through Inter’s defense.
Guardiola Explains Haaland’s Struggles Against Inter Milan
As a natural winner, Haaland will likely be reflecting on why he couldn’t score against Inter Milan. Remarkably, in two games against the Italian club, the Norwegian has yet to find the back of the net. Inter are one of the few teams that Haaland has not managed to score against since joining City.
Heading into this match, the former Borussia Dortmund star was likely hoping to break his drought after failing to score in the Champions League final. However, Simone Inzaghi’s game plan worked perfectly, keeping the prolific striker in check.
After the match, City boss Pep Guardiola explained why Haaland found it so difficult to make an impact.
“There were six players around him. Six. Three behind, three in front. That’s how they kept him out of the game,” Guardiola said, as quoted by journalist Simon Bajkowski.
Inter Milan’s Defensive Masterclass
Guardiola’s analysis highlights how Inter Milan’s defense didn’t allow Haaland any room to operate. Unlike Premier League teams, Inter gave him no space to exploit, executing Inzaghi’s tactics to perfection.
Alessandro Bastoni, Franco Acerbi, and Yann Bisseck delivered standout performances, suffocating Haaland’s presence in the box and preventing him from causing his usual chaos.
Moving forward, Guardiola will undoubtedly be strategizing on how to ensure Haaland isn’t neutralized in high-stakes matches like this. The challenge will be figuring out how to get his star striker back to his lethal best, even against the most well-drilled defenses.
