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Slow start will not worry Haaland
Erling Haaland knows it may take time for him to settle on the pitch at Manchester City — not that he is letting that fluster him.
All eyes will be on the Norwegian, 22, when he makes his Premier League debut for City at West Ham on Sunday.
Haaland played the full 90 minutes in the 3-1 Community Shield defeat to Liverpool last Saturday, missing one huge chance at the King Power Stadium.
But in an interview with Sky Sports, the summer signing revealed he is relaxed about the pressure on him.
He said: “We will see about settling in. People can take time, people can come directly into it. We have to see, but I’m not concerned.
“That’s life as a footballer — you have to live with it. You are a kind of entertainer. You get judged every single week for what you do on the pitch and you have to deliver and do your best.
“For me as a striker, this is something I cannot stress about because if you think too much, you might end up doing things you don’t want to do.”
He added: “The chemistry on the pitch with the other players is something that will come — I don’t know if it will take weeks, months, but this is something we have to build on every single day in training.
“At this high level, you also understand the people around you — he is good at this, he is good at that, he loves to play the ball there.”
Van de Beek excited by new era
After two difficult seasons since signing for Manchester United, Donny van de Beek is excited for the new campaign to start.
Buoyed by the arrival of his former Ajax boss Erik ten Hag, the midfielder, 25, is expected to be given a chance to impress in the Premier League.
And after spending the second half of last season on loan at Everton, Van de Beek is enjoying being back with the Red Devils ahead of their opening game against Brighton this Sunday.
The Dutchman said: “We can’t wait. We had a tough pre-season and trained so hard and worked so hard.
“We are ready now for the league and everyone is excited about it.
“I think we’ve managed to get some great work in and, for me, just being back with the team is great.
“Last season and the last few months were difficult because I was injured and I couldn’t train and play a lot. So it’s really nice to be back and training hard.”
And the midfielder has called on the Old Trafford faithful to get behind the new era as they bid to break back into the top four.
“If you feel the power from the fans, it gives you a lot more energy and confidence as well,” he added.
“The fans mean a lot to us as a group. It’s really important to make a good start on Sunday. We need the points and that will give us a lot of energy and help us grow as a team.”
