Haaland says Manchester City must improve their attacking precision after Aston Villa defeat

Erling Haaland says Manchester City need to improve the way they create and finish chances after their 2-1 defeat by Aston Villa in the Premier League.

Manchester City were beaten by their hosts at Villa Park on Saturday in the eighth round of the Premier League, suffering a result that exposed a less familiar side of the team usually known for imposing control on their opponents.

Haaland identified the coordination between the team’s wide players and the rest of the attack as an area requiring improvement.

“We need to set up the wings, and then the wingers need to know when to run and when to keep the ball,” Haaland said, according to Tribuna.

The Norway striker insisted that Manchester City had still produced positive moments during the match, despite failing to take advantage of their opportunities.

“I honestly think we did some good things, don’t get me wrong,” he said. “We had chances. Look at Gvardiol in the second half; I had some headers, and in the first half Ndiaye also hit a shot that came back off the post.”

Haaland rejected the idea that the defeat could simply be explained by bad luck. Instead, he said Manchester City needed to become more accurate in front of goal and make their chances count.

“It is not bad luck, but we have to be more precise and put the ball in the net because that is what you have to do in football matches,” he added.