Erling Haaland and Kevin De Bruyne were ‘unplayable’ as they ‘HAT’ Arsenal, says Alan Shearer… as the pair combined superbly to put Man City in control of the title race
Alan Shearer described Erling Haaland and Kevin De Bruyne as ‘unplayable’ as they ‘bully’ Arsenal to put Manchester City in charge of the title race.
City beat the Gunners 4–1 to fall two points behind the league leaders with two games in hand going into the run-up.
De Bruyne and Haaland worked excellently together, with the Belgian scoring twice on assists from the Norwegian. Haaland then scored his 49th goal of an incredible season to round out the victory.
Pep Guardiola’s side are now favorites to overtake Arsenal and retain their Premier League crown – and they can add the FA Cup and Champions League in a historic treble.
Haaland also has eight assists for the season, while De Bruyne contributed 24 assists and nine goals, and Shearer said Arsenal defenders Rob Holding and Gabriel Magalhaes simply had no answer.
Kevin De Bruyne and Erling Haaland combined for devastating effect as Manchester City thrashed Arsenal 4-1 to put themselves in control of the Premier League title race
The Belgian scored twice, both with assists from Haaland, to put City in control of the game
Haaland put the icing on the cake after letting his hair down to give Man City’s fourth
“They were unplayable tonight, they bullied the two central halves Gabriel and Rob Holding,” he said in Match of the Day.
“Every time the ball went up, they knew when, how and where to run, the timing and then the finish.
“They were never too far apart, De Bruyne was always within five to ten yards of Haaland.
“It was a great performance from start to finish from Man City, they totally dominated every position. Some of the play tonight was absolutely stunning.
“Haaland was too strong, he got one goal, he could or should have scored three or four. His finish tonight was unlike the rest of the season.
“Arsenal just couldn’t handle them tonight, they bullied them.”
Rio Ferdinand, speaking on BT Sport, also praised De Bruyne after another outstanding performance.
“De Bruyne again, 24 assists, best in a season, he was phenomenal,” he said.
Alan Shearer said De Bruyne and Haaland were ‘unplayable’ as they ‘bully’ Arsenal defense
Rob Holding struggled to contain Haaland as City created chances at will during their win
“When you look at the big moments in a season, this guy has come up so many times in the past and he’s done it again today.”
City could have made it an even bigger humiliation for their title races, with some chances wasted and the four goals they did score.
De Bruyne spoke about Guardiola’s tactical set-up, which worked very well.
“I think we set up a little bit differently – instead of two No. 8s I had the freedom to go left or right depending on where the space was,” he told BT Sport.
“When they played hand-to-hand, we had to go a bit longer because there was no room for short passes. The first half was really good.
“We could have scored more. The second half was 50-50, but we didn’t give much away.
They are a class team and difficult to play against. We had to be at our best today – and we were.’
City will continue their pursuit of the title at Fulham on Sunday, while Arsenal will not see action until they host Chelsea next Tuesday.