Pep Guardiola claims NO defender in the world can thwart ‘unstoppable’ Erling Haaland after the Man City striker scored his second hat-trick of the season in win over West Ham
- Erling Haaland scored all three goals as Manchester City beat West Ham 3-1
- Pep Guardiola says Norwegian is ‘playing much better’ this season
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Pep Guardiola has claimed no defender in world football can stop the “unstoppable” Erling Haaland after he scored two consecutive Premier League hat-tricks.
Haaland scored all three goals as Manchester City maintained their 100 percent record at West Ham United. Guardiola admitted he was surprised by his team’s early-season performances.
The Norwegian has already scored seven league goals this season and is chasing his third Golden Boot since moving to England two years ago.
“Erling is unstoppable,” Guardiola said. “There is no central defender, not even with a gun, who can stop him. We know how clinical he is. Everyone knows it.
‘He plays much better in everything [this season]. The details, he now stays 20 minutes or half an hour after training. Last season he wasn’t there even once, because he didn’t feel well – tired, whiny.
Pep Guardiola says no defender in world football can stop the ‘unstoppable’ Erling Haaland
Haaland scored all three goals, helping Manchester City maintain their 100 percent record this season
“We’re happy with another hat-trick, the quality of the finishing, but he was involved in the game today. He didn’t lose a ball and played unbelievable – not only with the ball, but also defensively and offensively. He made an extra pass. I’m really happy for him.”
Haaland said he feels more energetic this year after a long summer break.
“Only football players know how important it is to take a break,” Haaland said. “You have to rest your body and mind because it’s a long season.
“It’s not as easy as people think. I feel fresh and that’s the most important thing. If you do that, you can practice things outside of training that you want to get better at.
“It was a great start. Let’s not get too far ahead of ourselves because there are potentially 70 games left this season.”