‘Nothing is decided yet’: Erling Haaland knows City can beat Arsenal to title
Pep Guardiola’s side have 11 league games left.
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Erling Haaland remains convinced Manchester City can win their fifth Premier League title in six seasons.
The prolific Norwegian striker did his part to ensure the defending champions kept pace with leaders Arsenal by converting a penalty in City’s 1-0 victory over Crystal Palace on Saturday.
Pep Guardiola’s side have 11 league games left, including a critical encounter with the Gunners at the Etihad on April 26, and Haaland is determined to ensure his debut season in English football is a memorable one.
“With this gap, we just have to focus on ourselves,” he told the club’s official website.
“We have them (Arsenal) at home and a lot of games left to play still. Nothing is decided yet. I enjoy it (title race), this is England, this is what I’ve been watching my entire life.
“I enjoy every single second of it. It’s good to be in the middle of it.”
Saturday’s penalty was Haaland’s 28th Premier League goal and 34th across all competitions for City, who signed the 22-year-old from Borussia Dortmund last May.
It also brought him one closer to the Premier League record for goals scored by an individual player in one campaign, jointly held by Alan Shearer, who netted 34 for Blackburn in 1994-95, one season after Andy Cole did the same for Newcastle.
It ultimately took Haaland 78 minutes to find the back of the net at Selhurst Park after missing a good chance before the break, when he fired an effort over the crossbar from close range.
He said: “Of course I don’t like to miss chances. I had one in the first half that I should have scored, there was a small thing in the grass that made the ball bounce higher.
“Everyone knows how important this win is for us. We have to keep going. I say this every time but it’s the truth.
“I was not concerned (when it was 0-0). I just do as I do every game, focus on my game. It’s not that bad, we have to keep going. As I said it’s not easy, I’m really proud.
“We have to play different ways. Other teams adapt to how City play, of course because in the last five years we have four Premier League (titles). That’s normal. What can I do, we just have to try to do our best and perform.”