Talking Tactics: Lethal Haaland may have a new City role

Erling Haaland scored yet another brace to help secure a 3-0 win for Manchester City in their Premier League opener at Burnley last Friday.

He also appeared to perform an interesting new role as Vincent Kompany's man-to-man pressing structure saw the Citizens go direct to the 22-year-old from goalkeeper Ederson on multiple occasions. 

This new pattern of play is yet another string in the bow of Pep Guardiola's already multi-faceted side and makes them an even more daunting opponent. 

As the Treble winners gear up to face high-flying Newcastle this evening, we unpick the newest dimension Haaland adds.

Robot is back

Haaland, 23, was up to his usual tricks at Turf Moor.

Within 40 minutes, the Norwegian already had two goals to his name, following on from his record-breaking 36-goal haul last term. 

Haaland recorded just 22 touches against Burnley — the fewest of any starting player from either side. 

Additionally, he only completed nine passes but his lack of involvement in the build-up did nothing to hamper his impact.

Long ball

The most interesting element of the fixture was how City bypassed Burnley's intense pressing structure. 

Ederson in particular was instructed to go long to Haaland, who was excellent at making the ball stick and City's defenders also looked to hit him with direct passes. 

Guardiola employed a similar tactic as City overcame Arsenal at the Etihad Stadium last season and the Norwegian clearly thrives in the role.

Pep's reprimand

Despite Haaland's brace putting City 2-0 up at half-time, Guardiola was not completely satisfied with his first-half performance against Burnley.

The Spanish manager was seen shouting at the striker as the teams headed towards the dressing room before pushing a TV camera away. 

He said: "You weren't moving with three minutes left. 

"With one minute left, we had to make long balls, completely opposite, it's the right tempo right now." 

While City are more willing to look long than they have been previously under Guardiola, the 52-year-old is clearly still insistent on his possession-based principles in most phases of play.

Post-match praise

Despite berating Haaland at half-time, Guardiola was full of praise for his striker after the match, particularly for the Norwegian's two goals. 

The City boss said: "Yeah, both were difficult [goals to score] but you know [Haaland's] talents. 

"His finishing is expectational and we made good transitions and played good." 

He also spoke about the half-time incident, explaining that he was "not frustrated" and that incidents like these "happen in football".

New challenge

City host an all-action Newcastle outfit this evening in what promises to be a tantalising affair. 

Eddie Howe's side are aggressive out of possession and attempt to win the ball back high up the pitch. 

As a result, Guardiola may instruct Ederson to go long again in the hope Haaland can run at Toon's centre-backs — or even bring team-mates into play.

City continue to evolve and an increased use of this tactic could unlock even greater potential in Haaland.