Erling Haaland set to join Man City but how have other forwards fared under Pep Guardiola?

Joe Hewlett
10 May 2022

Pep Guardiola is hoping Erling Haaland can be the final piece of the jigsaw for City but he has not always had the best relationships with his star strikers.

Manchester City have agreed a deal with Borussia Dortmund to sign Erling Haaland.

Regarded as one of the best young talents in world football, the 21-year-old joined the Bundesliga side from RB Salzburg midway through the 2019/20 season having notched 29 goals in 27 appearances for the Austrian side.

The former Molde striker has since gone on to score 85 times in 88 appearances for the Bundesliga side, becoming the youngest player to net 20 goals in the Champions League.

However, it appears his time at the Allianz Arena is now at an end.

A City statement read: "Manchester City can confirm we have reached an agreement in principle with Borussia Dortmund for the transfer of striker Erling Haaland to the club on July 1 2022.

"The transfer remains subject to the club finalising terms with the player."

With Haaland set to sign a five-year contract after his £63million release clause was triggered, Planet Sport takes a look at how other strikers have performed under Guardiola.

Thierry Henry

Appearances under Guardiola: 74

Goals: 30

Henry broke Arsenal hearts when he moved to Barcelona in 2007 but it was the following season he worked with Guardiola.

The Frenchman scored 26 goals in his first campaign under Pep - despite playing on the left - and alongside Samuel Eto'o and Lionel Messi, Henry won a historic treble, including the Champions League, in 2008/09.

His time on the pitch was limited the following season due to the emergence of Pedro and he departed in 2010 to New York Red Bulls.

Samuel Eto'o

Appearances: 52

Goals: 36

Eto'o only had one season with Guardiola, in 2008/09, and his scoring record was incredible.

The Cameroonian was also part of the treble-winning side along with Henry. However, at the end of the season, he was on his way to Inter Milan as part of a swap deal involving Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

And having played under both Guardiola and Jose Mourinho, Eto'o is well placed to talk about the two managers.

"I cannot compare Jose Mourinho to Pep Guardiola. One of them failed to win the Champions League with Bayern Munich while the other won it with Porto."

Ouch.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic

Appearances: 46

Goals: 22

Zlatan Ibrahimović: "Guardiola never understood me. He wanted to program everything I had to do on the pitch. Guardiola doesn't like players with personality. I became a problem and since he couldn't solve it, I solved it by leaving." pic.twitter.com/BLa8X3Ewjx
— Football Tweet ⚽ (@Football__Tweet) December 1, 2021

The Swede also managed just one full season at Barca under Guardiola in 2009/10 after a furious fallout.

Ibrahimovic spoke about his experiences with Guardiola in his autobiography 'Zlatan' and revealed where things went wrong.

"It started well but then Messi started to talk. He wanted to play in the middle, not on the wing, so the system changed from 4-3-3 to 4-5-1.

"I was sacrificed and no longer had the freedom on the pitch I need to succeed."

Roberto Lewandowski

Appearances: 100

Goals: 67

The Polish forward joined Bayern from Borussia Dortmund in 2014 on a free transfer.

Lewandowski - who won the Bundesliga title in both seasons under Guardiola - was the top goalscorer in the 2015/16 season with 30 league goals.

Guardiola said Lewandowski was the "most professional player" he had ever coached back in 2016.

Sergio Aguero

Appearances: 182

Goals: 124

Aguero is regarded as one of the greatest imports the Premier League has ever seen.

Under Guardiola, Aguero overtook Thierry Henry as the highest non-English scorer in Premier League history with 184 goals.

While his relationship with the Catalan manager seemed rocky at times, Guardiola could not praise him enough for his time at the Etihad.

"What he did in England is unmatched. In this club (Manchester City), there is a before and after him. He made the best goal of the club there was, there is and there will be in history," said Guardiola in reference to Aguero's title-winning goal against QPR in 2011/12.