Of all teams, against Dortmund: Haaland follows in Cruyff’s footsteps | OneFootball

Scoring goals is nothing special for Erling Haaland (25). Whether wearing the jersey of RB Salzburg, Borussia Dortmund, or Manchester City, the Norwegian giant scores almost at will. But on the evening of September 14, 2022, something extraordinary happened at the Etihad Stadium.

Just like on Wednesday (November 5, 9 PM), Man City and BVB faced each other in the group stage of the Champions League. Only a few months earlier, Haaland had swapped the black and yellow jersey for the sky-blue kit. For the striker, the first duel with his former club was to be unforgettable – as it was for everyone who witnessed the match.

That evening at the Etihad Stadium, Pep Guardiola's (54) star ensemble struggled for a long time against the excellently organized Dortmund team by Edin Terzić (43). Many of the Cityzens' attacking efforts were thwarted by BVB's well-organized defense around Mats Hummels (36) and Niklas Süle (30). Quite the opposite: In the 56th minute, Jude Bellingham (22) headed in a perfectly timed cross from Marco Reus (36) to make it 1-0 for the Bundesliga side.

“Erling Haaland is just Erling Haaland”

It wasn't until the 80th minute that the hosts managed to equalize 1-1 with a screamer from John Stones (31). Time was running out for Manchester to score the winning goal. Then came the moment for the history books. João Cancelo (31) delivered a cross with the outside of his foot from the left side into the Dortmund penalty area. There, Haaland rose into the air and artistically sent the ball past the stunned Alexander Meyer (34) with a Kung-Fu kick into the net for 2-1.

Photo: Getty Images

Guardiola was reminded of one of the greats of the craft at that moment. “When Erling scored that goal, I thought of Johan Cruyff and the goal he scored at the Nou Camp,” the Catalan later reported. On December 22, 1973, the Dutch legend scored a flying backheel goal in the match between FC Barcelona and Atlético Madrid (2-1).

UEFA later chose Haaland's goal as the CL Goal of the Season. The scorer himself remained cool. “I have long legs and can jump well,” the Norwegian explained after the duel with his former club. Hummels summed it up: “Erling Haaland is just Erling Haaland.”

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.