Arsene Wenger has stuck up for a certain Manchester City player who has received heavy criticism lately.
Having managed a club of Arsenal’s stature for 22 years, it’s safe to say Wenger knows a thing or two about being in the spotlight.
Despite having revolutionised English football and coaching some of the greatest teams to have ever played in the country, the Frenchman’s tactics and approach to football were often ridiculed.
Of course, Arsene Wenger’s greatness was also widely recognised and deservedly so.
Having coached big names like Thierry Henry, Patrick Vieira, Dennis Bergkamp and Tony Adams, the retired manager also has a better understanding of most of how players of such a calibre get slated.
At a club like Manchester City where fans and pundits alike expect them to win in some capacity every season, once the team or one of their players even has a rough patch, the discourse is seemingly centred around them for the rest of the week.
More so when it is negative.
Wenger defends Man City player who’s been criticised recently
It comes more as a shock when a player at City even seems human.
For instance, after the Sky Blues’ 1-0 win in the Champions League final over Inter Milan, Stan Collymore claimed there were “big question marks” over Kevin De Bruyne.
Collymore used De Bruyne’s injuries in European finals against Chelsea and Inter to drive his point home.
Such is the pressure that the City players come under, even when it comes to matters out of their control.
As a result, the Manchester City cohort has been questioned on several occasions this season, with Ruben Dias’ performances being labelled as “bang average” this campaign by Steve Nicol.
That is, despite them conceding just one lesser Premier League goal than Liverpool, who have been hailed for their defensive solidity, with Virgil van Dijk being praised left, right and centre.
However, it seems like the player at the Etihad Stadium who comes under the most criticism is Erling Haaland and Arsene Wenger has come to his defence.
“First of all, [Erling] Haaland is an exceptional football player”, he said on beIN SPORTS.
“To score a goal in a football game is difficult. And when a guy scores 40 every year, no matter where he plays, you can say he’s a great football player. After that, he goes a little bit now through a difficult patch. That happens to everybody.”
Recently, Roy Keane made headlines when he likened the Norwegian to a “League Two player.”
Rio Ferdinand also claimed that he has never been particularly wowed by the treble-winner’s all-round game.
Arsene Wenger makes a valid point about Erling Haaland
In our view, Arsene Wenger made a valid point while discussing Erling Haaland.
Every club Haaland has gone to, he has scored goals galore and as Wenger said, for that reason alone, he is an “exceptional” player.
Not many players in the world can rival the Leeds-born striker in this regard.
The veteran was also correct in stating that like any player, Erling Haaland is allowed to have a difficult period.
Instead of the discourse around Haaland being as muddled as it is, the Arsenal legend has a simplistic, yet accurate view on him.
