Rodri reveals excitement at Erling Haaland signing | OneFootball

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·28 May 2022

Rodri reveals excitement at Erling Haaland signing

Article image:Rodri reveals excitement at Erling Haaland signing

Rodri has revealed his excitement at Erling Haaland's impending move to Manchester City and expects his side's style of play to change with the addition of a classic centre forward.

City signed the Norwegian from Borussia Dortmund for a fee of around £55m and it will be the first time Pep Guardiola's team have played with an orthodox striker up front since the departure of Sergio Aguero.


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While they have enjoyed great success with their false nine system, Rodri expects City to shift gears with the arrival of Haaland.

He told AS: "The Viking is joining! He is a player who’ll change the way we play. We use a false nine, which gives you some things but also takes away others. It was clear to me that Haaland would fit in. We had a space in the squad that he is going to fill. He is an amazing physical specimen.

"After playing against them in Dortmund, I said to Rúben Días, who is also physically something else: ‘He battered right through you!'”

Haaland is one of the world's leading strikers, having scored 86 goals in 89 appearances for Dortmund following his move to Germany from Salzburg. City had previously eyed Tottenham's Harry Kane, but never stumped up the cash to satisfy Spurs' demands and have instead moved for Haaland.

The next step for City remains winning the Champions League. They almost reached the final this year but were undone by another late show by Real Madrid, who will face Liverpool in Saturday's showpiece in Paris.

Asked where the City project is headed, Rodri added: "Building a team with a clear idea. We’re missing Europe [the Champions League], that’s clear, but we’re close. Building the winning mentality too, I always say that. These years are giving us experience. Little by little we’re getting there: finalists last year, almost finalists this year."

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