Haaland sparks victory over Galatasaray to seal sloppy City’s progress

Pep Guardiola often bemoans the schedule so for Manchester City to enter the last 16 directly will please.

- Jamie Jackson

The manager, though, was clearly unhappy with the team performance that set up the victory and progression due to a troubling sluggishness and doing what annoys him most: failing to play the high-octane way that he drills into his players.

Erling Haaland’s opener - only a second in the striker’s last eight matches - and Rayan Cherki’s second, each before the interval, were slickly taken but they derived from slack Galatasaray defensive work.

Throughout, Guardiola yelled at the side tostep up concentration and tempo. As a perfectionist this will trouble him, yet for now, City have avoided two extra games which is a definite boon.

On a night of myriad permutations Guardiola’s brief to City was the sameas always: go out there and win. His players began ina stadium made noisy by the vociferous travelling support who nearly witnessed Haaland score in front of the 2,600 fans behind Ugurcan Cakit’s goal.

Rayan Ait-Nouri’scross offered the No 9, goalless from open play in his last seven outings, a plum chance to head past Galatasaray’s No 1 but he failed tohitthe target. Momentslater, though, the Norwegian sprinted onto Jérémy Doku’s defence-splitter and coolly chipped Cakir.