Maresca praises Haaland’s instincts after Manchester City edge past Leipzig

Enzo Maresca praised Erling Haaland’s alertness and finishing after the striker scored the decisive goal in Manchester City’s 3-2 Champions League win over RB Leipzig in Germany.

Haaland had only 13 touches during the match but made one of them count, reacting at the back post to complete a move created by Elliot Anderson and secure three points for City.

Maresca said Haaland had to stay focused even during periods when he was not closely involved, because the Norway international could influence the match at any moment.

“I said yesterday that it’s always important that Erling is inside the game,” Maresca said. “We know that any moment he can help us and he can score goals.”

The City manager was encouraged that several players contributed to the scoring, although he believes his side failed to make full use of the chances they created.

“Tonight also we scored more goals with different players, so we created so many chances that unfortunately we missed,” he added. “I’m very happy he scored. Happy for him. It’s always a nice feeling to win and to be the captain.”

Despite the victory, Maresca accepted Haaland’s view that City remain some way short of their best, with defensive improvement a particular priority.

“Absolutely, no doubt. That’s why I’m so happy, so confident because I can see that we can do much better,” he said.

Maresca has been working with the squad for only four months and believes the team need more time to develop a stronger understanding of his methods and each other.

He was especially critical of the way City allowed Leipzig to score twice, saying both goals should have been prevented.

“We need to avoid conceding silly goals. We need to understand, analyse and review things,” he explained.

The manager added that he was still learning about his players, while they continued to adapt to his approach.

Maresca was nevertheless pleased with the result, highlighting the challenge of winning away from home in Germany in the Champions League.

Manchester City now return to Premier League action, with Nottingham Forest their next opponents at The City Ground on Saturday.