Back to the Premier League Newsfeed

MARTIN KEOWN TALKS TACTICS: How would I cope with Man City's Erling Haaland? By becoming his worst nightmare! The Norwegian man mountain is a true No 9 but defenders can unsettle him by being physical and starving him of service

Every centre back in England will have Erling Haaland marked in their black book as a personal challenge. I would have loved to have tested myself against this man-mountain who’s a true No 9 in every sense thanks to his power, pace and poise.

Haaland looks like an honest competitor — someone with the brute strength to handle himself and won’t be dropping down easily under pressure from defenders — and I like that. Whenever I faced a big-name signing who was new to England, that first contact was key — that’s when you can say: ‘Welcome to the Premier League.