Manchester City thrashed Chelsea 4-2 in a preseason friendly as Erling Haaland scored a hattrick. Both the clubs have only won one preseason game so far. New Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca has more reasons to worry as the team is making a lot of errors. Star striker Haaland dominated Chelsea in the friendly, the defenders could not mark him at all. The 24 year old scored twice in 5 minutes giving his opposition no relief.
Chelsea has been playing with their first team since the beginning but the results are not upto the mark. The Premier league champions started their second team and still thrashed Maresca’s men. His risky style of play proved to be costly against the Cityzens. The defenders made too many errors during build up which led to conceding silly goals.
Chelsea were down by four goals when Raheem Sterling and Madueke pulled two goals back. Things could have been worse for the Blues. However, the pitch condition was really bad. Both the managers blamed the pitch for being too dry due to which mistakes in possession happened. The Londoners will need to hold things together and start their season confidently. The manager admitted to his team’s flaws. He says;
“We need to learn that when you concede one, you cannot concede one and then after two minutes another one. It is a strange game because you plan the game in one way, then you concede two goals and it changes the dynamic.“
The Cityzens’ new attacking trio
Manchester City have formed a new attacking trio in preseason. It is Jack Grealish on the left, Haaland in the middle and Oscar Bobb on the right. Grealish has been on a different level since he was snubbed from England’s Euro 2024 squad. He is taking on players, linking up with Haaland and creating threatening chances.
Erling Haaland and his compatriot Oscar Bobb also have been phenomenal recently. Bobb looked sharp in every game. He is very fast and has great footwork. He can easily dribble past opposition and create a goal scoring chance out of nowhere. The 21 year old has earned Pep Guardiola’s trust and will have an important role to play this season.
As Julian Alvarez is leaving for Atletico Madrid, the 21 year old Norwegian might need to take his place. Pep deploys him in a free role which allows him to thrive on the pitch. Man City have won only one preseason game like Chelsea but they have plenty of positives to take. Youngster James McAtee also impressed in the preseason.
Pep Guardiola praised Jack Grealish’s efforts after the game. He says;
“Jack has had an unbelievable three games,” Guardiola said. I said the first game is about rhythm. Against Barcelona he made five shots, one goal and today he is aggressive.”
Man City target joins Spanish giants
FC Barcelona has finalized a deal for Manchester City target Dani Olmo. According to Sky Germany, Olmo was Pep Guardiola and Hansi Flick’s priority signing this season. He has a release clause of €60m which is triggered by the Catalan club. The deal is done and the player has arrived in Barcelona to sign a six year contract keeping him at the club until 2030.
Dani Olmo made to the headlines after his stellar performances in the Euros. He was not even a starter for Spain. After Pedri’s injury, he came on as a substitute and produced a breathtaking performance against the host nation Germany. He also scored a brilliant goal in the semi final against france. He won the Golden boot award. City wanted to sign him but Barca were too quick.
Manchester City has shifted their attention to Wolves’ forward Pedro Neto. Despite signing Savinho they are keen to make their attack stronger. The Portuguese has a contract until 2027 and is expected to move this season. Arsenal and Tottenham are also interested in signing the €30m player. He scored 14 goals and provided 24 assists last season.
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