This summer, Maheta Molango visited a number of players in the Premier League. One of them stood out. Molango is head of the Professional Footballers’ Association in Great Britain (PFA) and met several profiles who said they were exhausted. About the only one who was looking forward to playing again was Erling Braut Haaland. – It’s nice to come into a dressing room and hear someone say: “I’ve missed this.” I have missed working out. I’m fired up, I’m motivated,” said Molango. By playing for Norway, Haaland has an advantage over the rest of the stars. He has had a real day off. Elsker August Haaland took a break after the friendly match against Denmark on 8 June. At the same time, other stars charged up for the EC and Copa América – the South American championship – where the finalists were finalized in mid-July, one month before the start of the Premier League. They slept in hotels, trained and played matches. Haaland flopped around in the sun with sand between his toes. It seems. PANGSTART: The opening match against Chelsea ended with a goal for Haaland. Photo: Reuters In three league games, Haaland has scored seven goals for Manchester City. The only team that has scored more than Haaland in the Premier League is his own. Here are the top scorers before this weekend’s round: 7 – Erling Braut Haaland 6 – 5 – 4 – 3 – Mohamed Salah, Bryan Mbeumo, Luis Díaz, Noni Madueke 2 – Ten players You can say that this is normal for Haaland. Two weeks ago, the British newspaper The Times wrote about how Haaland “loves August”. Haaland had 16 goals in 10 games that month during three seasons at City. The newspaper pointed out that Haaland often gets time off because he plays for Norway, that he is good at relaxing, and that he is a pro in the preparations for the new season. The day after the case came out, Haaland scored a beautiful hat trick against West Ham on the last day of the month. Now there are 19 goals in 11 games. Nevertheless. The shape we see now is unusual. Remains after training The details behind the stage curtain suggest that Haaland has reached a new level. City’s coach Pep Guardiola says that the striker has “become better at everything”. Where Haaland squandered big chances last season, he now scores on almost every second finish. According to Guardiola, Haaland now stays on the training field for around half an hour after each session to practice combinations and finishes. This did not happen once last season. HAT TRICK: Erling Braut Haaland scores here his third against Ipswich earlier in the season. Photo: AFP Then Haaland’s summer holiday was shorter. He played 53 games for City as they won the treble, ending the season with Norway’s win against Cyprus on 20 June. Three days earlier, Ståle Solbakken had taken him off six minutes before the end, before Norway conceded two goals at home against Scotland. Solbakken said he was tired, a reason few bought. But Guardiola says that Haaland had not yet recovered when he returned to Manchester in August. – Maybe he had too little holiday. I remember him saying at the start that he still felt tired and a little empty, Guardiola said. Haaland also struggled with minor injuries. He lacked the energy to stay after practice, and in December he suffered a fatigue fracture in his foot, an injury that can occur when you play too much. He was out for seven weeks. Nevertheless, Haaland became the top scorer in the Premier League. But only now is he 100%. Only one match Haaland The stars in the Premier League have reason to be envious. The league is packed with profiles who should have had just as much time off, but who got on a plane to the USA and Germany to play in the Copa América and EC. Even those who did not play had to attend team meetings, training, interviews and matches. Haaland can only look around the dressing room to understand how intense the EC was. Phil Foden fell ill almost as soon as he started playing again, while Rodri suffered a muscle injury in the final. Kyle Walker, John Stones and Jack Grealish have taken a long time to get going. TEAMMATE: Phil Foden has had to endure more matches than Haaland. Photo: Reuters Haaland’s friend from the time in Dortmund, Jude Bellingham, seemed exhausted already during the EC, and was injured almost as soon as he returned to Real Madrid. The only one who has matched Haaland’s performances in the Premier League so far is Mohamed Salah. He plays for Egypt. Which, like Norway, had summer holidays. Always ready Salah has benefited from his nationality for a long time. Like Haaland, he is a superstar from a country that never plays tournaments in the summer. Norway stumbles in the qualifiers, Egypt plays the African Championship in the winter. IN GREAT FORM: Mohamed Salah has also had a good start to the season for Liverpool. Photo: AP Salah was unstoppable for Liverpool last autumn, before suffering a muscle injury during the Africa Cup of Nations in January. As soon as he played for Liverpool again, he suffered another injury, and struggled with form for the rest of the season. It happens to everyone. Tottenham star Heung-min Son also lost his rhythm after playing for South Korea in the Asian Championship at the start of the year. But in August, Salah is always ready. In eight seasons at Liverpool, Salah has scored nine goals in the first league game of the season, which is a record in the Premier League. Partly because he is preparing in a professional way, and partly because he has actually been allowed to take time off. Plaintiff Fifa Haaland should enjoy this feeling while he can. Next summer he will play in Fifa’s new Club World Cup, a monster of a tournament that sends some of the world’s best teams to the United States from mid-June to mid-July. More matches, more wear and tear and more money for Fifa. In 2026, Haaland may play in the World Cup in the same country, in a tournament that has been expanded to 48 teams. More matches, more wear and tear and more money for Fifa. MIGHTY PRESIDENT: Fifa president Gianni Infantino will introduce a new World Cup for club teams next summer. Photo: AFP The calendar is being filled up all the time. Several coaches and players are coming out against the match schedule, while the PFA and FIFPro, the international association for footballers, have sued Fifa because they are putting the players’ health at risk. At the same time, the Champions League has 36 teams this season: More matches, more money. If nothing else, Haaland can now show the world the value of taking a break from driving, and he can do it in the form of scores and records. Even target machines cannot be screwed on all the time. Published 14.09.2024, at 14.26 Updated 14.09.2024, at 2:30 p.m
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The secret behind Haaland’s form? The summer holiday – news Sport – Sports news, results and broadcast schedule
