Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Manchester Evening News
Manchester Evening News
Sport
Alex Brotherton

Kyle Walker sends Erling Haaland message as Man City begin pre-season

Manchester City's players reported for pre-season on Monday after a month off, with summer signing Erling Haaland partaking in his first training session at the club.

Haaland's arrival - brought about by City activating the £51m release clause in his Borussia Dortmund contract - marked the end of the Blues' hunt for a new elite striker.

Failed attempts to replace Sergio Aguero with Harry Kane and then Cristiano Ronaldo left Pep Guardiola frustrated heading into last season, but now he will have a full pre-season to get his new attacking weapon fully up to speed with his system.

It's been a busy couple of days for Haaland, who along with Julian Alvarez and Stefan Ortega was presented to City fans on Sunday at a special new signings event.

READ MORE: The furthest I'd been is Spain, now I run a football team in the US' - the former Man City youngster on a mission to transform women's football with clothing brand

Speaking at the event and in the press conference that followed, Haaland exuded confidence when looking ahead to the new season, refusing to get overexcited but asserting that the most important thing for him is to have fun and score goals.

You might expect a 21-year-old who scored 83 goals in 87 games for his previous club to hold an inflated view of himself, but when asked how he can improve, he was refreshingly humble in his self reflection.

"Everything. Left foot, right foot, movement with the ball, off the ball, everything," he said.

Haaland certainly doesn't see his move to City as an easy option - he'll be under no illusions that there is plenty of work to do before the season begins, a view echoed by his new teammate Kyle Walker.

The pair bumped into each other behind the scenes at the Etihad on Sunday, with City publishing a photo of them both.

Walker later posted the image on his Instagram story with the message: "Good to meet you now to get started!"

That kind of attitude - where pleasantries and jokes are welcomed but not at the expense of hard work and commitment - is key to being a success under Guardiola at City.

Haaland may appear light-hearted and laid back, but behind that public persona he'll be working just as hard as anyone.

ALSO READ:

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.