“There is no excuse” – Erling Haaland takes full responsibility for subdued goalscoring run | OneFootball

Manchester City number nine Erling Haaland has taken accountability for the goals drying up for the Norwegian of late.

Haaland scored his third goal in 11 games on Sunday evening to complete a stunning 2-1 comeback win for Manchester City against Liverpool at Anfield – sealing a first Premier League double for the Blues over the Reds since 1937.

The 25-year-old has scored 21 times in the Premier League campaign and after enjoying a stupendous first half of the season, Haaland has struggled to replicate his early season form so far in 2026.

City made a poor start to the calendar year that allowed Arsenal to extend their lead at the top of the table, raising doubts over the Blues’ prospects of winning silverware in the second half of the season. However, the tide is starting to shift.

A thrilling turnaround courtesy of goals from club captain Bernardo Silva and Haaland in the final 15 minutes of Sunday’s contest at Anfield has given Manchester City a monumental psychological boost in the title race.

Silva went as far as admitting in a post-match interview that there was talk of the title race being done and dusted had City lost to the reigning Premier League champions at the weekend, though it is not over till it is truly over for Pep Guardiola’s men.

City are still competing on four fronts, having set up a Carabao Cup final date with Arsenal for March 22 and securing direct qualification to the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 by means of an eighth place group-phase finish.

The January signing of Antoine Semenyo from Bournemouth and the form shown by Omar Marmoush since his return from the Africa Cup of Nations have helped alleviate Haaland’s goalscoring burden – but City’s number nine knows he has been far from his best so far this year.

In conversation with Simon Bajkowski of the Manchester Evening News after City’s crucial triumph at Anfield, Haaland said: “I haven’t scored enough goals since the start of this year, you can say – and I know that I need to improve.

“I know I need to be more sharp, better at all of this and this is something that I have to work on. I have to keep going because this is what everyone deserves and expects. I don’t want to speak about why I haven’t performed. I don’t think there is any excuse.

“Fatigue is a lot is in the head. It’s a lot of games. Look at the schedule, it’s not easy, and for me, it’s about staying fit, don’t get injured. That’s the most important thing. And try to be ready to help the team.”

There was an outpouring of emotion from Haaland after he converted a 90+2′ minute penalty at Anfield and Guardiola will know full well the importance an away winner will give his formidable striker, who will no doubt be back to his best sooner rather than later.