Guardiola: 'I don't want Haaland to break Messi's FA Cup record'
On March 14, Guardiola pulled Haaland off the field in the 57th minute in a 7-0 win over Leipzig. This decision cost Haaland the opportunity to become the first player to score six goals in a Champions League match. Later, Guardiola was suspected of not wanting the Norwegian striker to break the record of his former student Lionel Messi, who scored five goals in Barca's 7-1 win over Leverkusen in 2012.
In the FA Cup quarter-final against Burnley on the evening of March 18, Guardiola also withdrew Haaland from the 63rd minute. At this point, Haaland had a hat-trick. "I don't want him to break Messi's FA Cup record," Guardiola joked after the game. "I try to punish my players. That's my intention."
In more than half of his first season playing for Man City, Haaland had 42 goals. The 22-year-old forward is aiming to break English football records: Ruud Van Nistelrooy's 44 goals a season in the Premier League era and Dixie Dean's 60 goals in the 1920s.
According to Guardiola, Haaland has the ability to finish very effectively. Besides, the combination with his own strength makes the 22-year-old striker a threat to any opponent. But on the other hand, he is also worried about the growing expectations for Haaland. "He will have problems in the future because everyone is expecting him to score three or four goals a game," predicted Guardiola. "It will not happen".
With the FA Cup semi-final, Man City still has a chance to win the treble. In the English Premier League, Guardiola's teachers and students are second with 61 points, five points behind Arsenal before the last 11 rounds. They are also set to meet Bayern in the quarter-finals of the Champions League.
According to Guardiola, Man City will have to win almost every remaining game in the Premier League, because Arsenal are playing "too good". He also thinks that meeting Bayern in the Champions League is an honor. "Man City to survive in three arenas is unbelievable," said Guardiola. "The best is coming and hopefully we can take it one game at a time."
Guardiola helped Man City win four Premier Leagues, one FA Cup, four League Cups and two English Super Cups. However, he has not won the Champions League as he has won it twice with Barca. In the Champions League final 2021, Guardiola's teachers and students lost 0-1 to Chelsea.
This is the sixth consecutive season that Guardiola has led Man City to the quarter-finals of the Champions League. No team has done this in the same period, not even Real, Liverpool and Bayern.
