ERLING HAALAND OPENS UP ABOUT ORIGINS OF HIS VIRAL ROBOT CELEBRATION

Erling Haaland revealed his new robot celebration is a direct response to being called a "robot" due to his insane stats. The Man City star explained the tribute to Peter Crouch after scoring twice against Bournemouth.

Erling Haaland Opens Up About Origins of His Viral Robot Celebration
Erling Haaland has suggested that his new robot celebration is a playful response to those who tease him about his astonishing statistics - COURTESY/PHOTO

Erling Haaland has made it clear that his new robot celebration is a lighthearted retort to people who make fun of his incredible stats.

The 25-year-old Norwegian striker made his debut after scoring the first goal in 107 games since joining Manchester City in May 2022 against Bournemouth at the Etihad over the weekend. Only sixteen minutes later, he added a second, increasing his total to 98.

With 13 goals from the first 10 Premier League games, Haaland is presently leading the Golden Boot standings. He has also scored eight goals for Norway in World Cup qualifying, putting his nation on the verge of the competition the following year.

After Les Ferdinand in 1995–96 and Haaland himself three years prior, this is just the third time a player has achieved that total in the top division thus early in the season. 

Many have referred to Haaland as "superhuman" because of his incredible stats, and the City striker shared the source of his new robot dance.

"I think Crouch (performed it) a little bit better than me, but I think the overall concept of the celebration was extremely wonderful for my side," Haaland said to TNT, referring to the well-known celebration that Peter Crouch made legendary.

Erling Haaland has implied that his new robot celebration, which was used after he scored against Bournemouth, is a lighthearted retort to people who make fun of his incredible stats.

When pushed to elaborate by TNT Sports host Jules Breach, Haaland said, "You know the reason."

"People calling you a robot, people calling you not human?" she said, to which Haaland responded with a knowing shrug and a broad smile.

"Yeah, I have mentioned it before," he continued. I arrived for a cause. I felt certain that I would perform here. Additionally, things have been going pretty well with Pep (Guardiola), and maybe they will continue to improve.

When Crouch scored for England in a friendly match against Hungary, he performed the robot celebration for the first time 19 years ago. A few days later, he did it again in a victory over Jamaica. After Haaland's dance, the former 42-cap England player even responded on X by tweeting, "I walked so they could run," coupled with a robot emoji and a tensing robotic arm.

After defeating Bournemouth, Manchester City moved up to second place in the Premier League, six points behind league leaders Arsenal.

"It is a significant win," Haaland stated following the game. Recovering from a poor away performance (against Aston Villa) is a good thing. It was pleasant.

By carrying out my duties, I attempted to support the squad. Winning is a fantastic feeling. We must continue to concentrate since we have two more crucial games left.

When Crouch scored for England in a friendly match 19 years ago, he executed the robot celebration for the first time.

I constantly attempt to help the team win, even though I did not score in our most recent game. That is my objective, and it makes no difference if I win duels or score goals.

"I wish to assist the squad in improving." That is what I do.

Haaland scored more than one goal in this Premier League home game for the fourth time in a row. Former Liverpool forwards Robbie Fowler and Luis Suarez are the only other players to have accomplished the feat.

PEP GUARDIOLA REFUSES TO GUARANTEE RODRI’S RETURN FOR MONDAY’S PREMIER LEAGUE CLASH

Pep Guardiola provides the latest injury news on Rodri, Ruben Dias, and Josko Gvardiol ahead of a crucial title race clash at Everton.

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Rodri still absent from City training ahead of vital Everton trip - Photo Credit: Getty Images

Pep Guardiola has shared the latest on Manchester City's injury situation ahead of Monday’s Premier League match against Everton at the Hill Dickinson Stadium.

City is in good form right now. They came from behind to beat Southampton 2-1 in the FA Cup semi-final last weekend, making it six wins in a row across all competitions.

But they’ve had to do it without Rodri. He's missed their last two matches, including a tight 1-0 win at Burnley, after hurting his groin against Arsenal a couple of weeks back. Guardiola recently told reporters that Rodri is getting better, but the team’s been cautious and isn’t rushing him back.

At his latest press conference on Friday, Guardiola said Rodri still hasn’t returned to training, so they’re just taking it day by day. There's hope, but Guardiola wouldn’t give any guarantees about Rodri’s chances of playing against Everton. "He’s getting better. Still, he didn't train with us, so we’ll see in the next few days,” he said. When pressed about his confidence, Pep just replied, “I am always confident.”

With Rodri still not training, it sounds like a last-minute decision on whether he’ll play. A start against Everton seems unlikely. That probably means Nico González, who scored the winner against Southampton, will keep his spot in midfield next to Bernardo Silva. Maybe Nico O’Reilly slides into central midfield, too, if he isn’t covering at left-back.

It’s not all good news in defence either. Ruben Dias is still out with the ankle injury that’s kept him sidelined for the last six games, and Josko Gvardiol is recovering from the tibial fracture he picked up in January. Both are working their way back, and Guardiola says they’re improving, but there’s no sign of a return just yet.

Turning to the Everton game, City could head into it trailing Arsenal by six points if the Gunners beat Fulham on Saturday. With the title race this tight, City can’t afford to slip up.

Guardiola knows Monday will be tough. “Everton have always been tough,” he said. “Old Everton was so cool and so British, and I loved to go there, but in the new stadium, they are defending really well, and it has always been tough." He’s not taking recent Everton results lightly, adding, 'They're fighting for a place in Europe. We won with two or three actions here, but we were not good at that moment. We can’t have any result but win, win, win.”

Everton won’t be easy, especially away, but City can at least take confidence from their strong record of 17 league games unbeaten against the Toffees. They won the reverse fixture 2-0, with Haaland scoring both goals. Still, Guardiola isn’t expecting it to be straightforward.

MANCHESTER CITY’S REQUEST TO RESCHEDULE PIVOTAL PREMIER LEAGUE TIES BRUTALLY DENIED

The Premier League has rejected Man City’s plea to swap Palace and Bournemouth matches. See City's brutal end-of-season schedule.

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Pep Guardiola’s domestic treble hunt faces a major hurdle after league fixture refusal - Photo Credit: AFP via Getty Images

Manchester City are on the hunt for another domestic treble just seven years after the last one. Pep Guardiola pulled it off in 2018/19 with wins in the Premier League, FA Cup, and Carabao Cup. Now he's got his sights set on doing it again.

City’s deep run in the cups has created a mess for their league schedule. Their home game against Crystal Palace, which was supposed to happen during the Carabao Cup final weekend on March 22, got bumped. Same thing with their trip to Bournemouth, originally set for the day after the FA Cup final.

There’s a hold-up with rescheduling Palace; the Eagles’ Conference League semi-final run means they’ve got barely any free midweek dates. The match was pencilled in for Wednesday, May 13, but things got complicated when City reached the FA Cup Final, and Bournemouth got postponed too. The city asked the Premier League if they could play Bournemouth on Tuesday, May 12, then face Palace a week later, to squeeze in an extra recovery day before the Wembley showdown. Plus, that would give them the bonus of finishing their last two league games at home. But the Premier League usually insists that the fixture that was originally scheduled first in this case, Palace, gets played first.

According to The Mirror, City’s request was shot down. So now Guardiola’s team has to cram their last four matches into just 12 days: Palace visits on May 13, then the FA Cup Final, Bournemouth away on May 19, and finally wrapping things up at home to Aston Villa on May 24.

They couldn't play Bournemouth on May 20 because that’s the Europa League final night, and UEFA didn’t want any Premier League games stealing the spotlight when Aston Villa or Nottingham Forest could be involved.

The Mirror says the revised fixture dates and kick-off times are coming out today. Chelsea, also FA Cup finalists, will play their rescheduled match against Tottenham on May 19.

City still has to travel to Everton next Monday and host Brentford on Saturday, May 9. Then comes their jam-packed finish, starting with Palace.

Meanwhile, title rivals Arsenal will be hoping City’s crowded schedule works in their favour. Though Arsenal has its own challenge, a Champions League semi-final against Atletico Madrid is spread across the next two midweeks.

Arsenal closes out its league campaign with home games against Fulham and Burnley and trips to West Ham and Palace.

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