When Manchester City was held to a 0-0 draw by Arsenal at the end of March, Erling Haaland had not scored in three matches; City had failed to find the back of the net in a Premier League game at home for the first time since October 2021.
It was a frustrating result for Pep Guardiola’s side, which trailed both the Gunners and then leader Liverpool at that stage. Haaland was beginning to face the sort of criticism he had never experienced before in his career. Former Manchester United captain Roy Keane described the centre-forward’s play as “almost League Two level”.
