Guardiola supports Erling Haaland to continue playing fiercely, after the Norwegian striker was criticized for his solid kick.
“I like the aggressive spirit, open the limit. Not only Haaland, other players should. Of course, you always have to use your head, but you have to play with passion. That’s essential. . I prefer that to meekness,” said Guardiola at the press conference before the match against Chelsea.
In the 1-1 draw at Everton on December 31, Haaland was repeatedly fouled, the most serious being Ben Godfrey’s foul at the beginning of the game. The 22-year-old striker seems to have lost his temper. He retaliated with a malicious tackle on Vitaliy Mykolenko late in the first half. Many Everton players surrounded Haaland and asked the referee for a red card, but the Norwegian striker only received a yellow card. After the game, Guardiola was sympathetic, but asked Haaland to be careful to avoid being sent off.
“Strikers have to deal with tricky defenders and they need to,” added Guardiola. “Against Chelsea, Haaland will face Kalidou Koulibaly and Thiago Silva. It’s always a big challenge and shows the specialness of the Premier League.”
The draw between Arsenal and Newcastle opens the opportunity for Man City to narrow the gap with the top team to 5 points, if they beat Chelsea. That result will also help them widen the gap with the two teams behind, Newcastle and Man Utd, to four points.
Commenting on rivals in the championship race, Guardiola said that Arsenal and Man Utd benefit from less expectations than Man City, although the two rivals are marginally better in terms of achievements. “The advantage of Arsenal and Man Utd is that nobody expects them to lead the league by 20 points in November like Man City,” said the Spaniard.
As a guest of Chelsea today, Guardiola expects defender Kyle Walker to make his first appearance after the 2022 World Cup. The 32-year-old has not fully recovered from his injury, but attended training on January 3.
