Erling Haaland gives Man City five-word message as Liverpool gains major title race advantage

Erling Haaland has scored only once in his last five Premier League games after netting 10 goals in his first 10 matches of the season.

Following Manchester City’s surprising 2-1 loss to Bournemouth, Haaland broke his silence. Andoni Iraola’s team managed to defeat the Premier League champions at the Vitality Stadium on Saturday, offering Liverpool a significant boost in the early title race.

Bournemouth’s Antoine Semenyo opened the scoring in the first minutes, and Evanilson added another around the hour mark. City’s Josko Gvardiol pulled one back late on, but Bournemouth held firm on the south coast.

With Liverpool securing a win over Brighton, Pep Guardiola’s squad now trails by two points in the title chase. After the match, Haaland expressed his frustration on Instagram, posting a picture from the game with the message: “Head down, back to work.”

Gvardiol also shared a moment on his Instagram story, reposting a picture with Tyler Adams, calling him “brate,” or “brother” in Croatian. The two shared the pitch 30 times for RB Leipzig in the 2021/2022 season, helping the club finish fourth in the Bundesliga, reach the Europa League semifinals, and win the DFB-Pokal.

Speaking after the loss to Bournemouth, Guardiola acknowledged City’s struggles to match their opponents’ intensity, saying, “We couldn’t match up to the intensity… We struggled with long balls, and when you can’t win those, it forces our defenders and strikers to play deeper.”

He added that City’s lack of rhythm due to injuries and limited training had created an imbalance, leaving some players overworked and others with limited minutes. “It’s a bit uncomfortable. We played well against Spurs, but today we couldn’t handle their intensity.”

After securing a fourth consecutive Premier League title in the 2023/24 season but missing out on the Treble with losses in the FA Cup final and Champions League quarterfinals, Guardiola and his team are now shifting focus to the transfer window.