Former Manchester City defender Bacary Sagna has hailed Erling Braut Haaland as “the best striker in the World” and claims that his old side are “ready to destroy any team” now that they have the Norwegian leading the line.
City landed Haaland from Borussia Dortmund this summer and the striker has hit the ground running in 2022-23, scoring 19 times in just twelve games between the Premier League and Champions League so far.
Pep Guardiola’s men have yet to lose in either competition this term and Sagna believes they can beat any opponent, heaping praise on the young centre-forward’s impact.
Speaking exclusively to Lord Ping, he said: “This is a machine of a team with Erling Haaland. Wow – they are ready to destroy any team.
“He is a machine. It is crazy how he can have such a huge impact in such a short space of time. He has been there for about three months – it’s insane what he is doing.
“In his first games, particularly the Community Shield, he missed a few chances and some people were quick to judge him, but he has made them eat their words.
“He responded to that in the best possible way – scoring goals. He is clinical.
“But you know, this a player who is 22 years old, but who has been scoring like this for years and years.
“For me, at the moment, he is the best striker in the world. I’m not surprised at all by how quickly he has adapted.
“He has made a phenomenal team better. The biggest credit that I can give him is that he has made a team that was already at the very top even better.
“With him in the City squad, you have to say that they are favourites for every single competition that they enter.
“It will be very difficult for any team to beat Manchester City this season.”
City’s next test is a derby clash with local rivals Manchester United, and Sagna has picked Haaland out as the outstanding player from either side ahead of the fixture, which he expects Guardiola’s outfit to win comfortably.
“[The key player in the Manchester derby] has to be Halaand,” Sagna added.
“After the start that he has had, the fact that there were stories about the possibility of him joining United before he went to Dortmund but they didn’t do it – I think he will want to show them what they missed out on.
“If I had to pick another [key player], I would say Kevin [De Bruyne] because we all know what he can do.
“I can’t see anyone other than City winning this match. I think City will win 3-0. I can’t see United causing City too many problems at all.”
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