Pep Guardiola has broken his silence on Manchester City’s capture of Erling Haaland and believes the "incredible young talent" will have no problems settling into his side ahead of his £51million move.
The Norwegian sensation has agreed in principle to join the current Premier League champions on a five-year contract from Borussia Dortmund, which will make him one of the highest-paid players at the club. The 21-year-old will follow in the footsteps of father Alf-Inge Haaland, who played for City between 2000 and 2003.
And in the wake of their second successive five-goal win, Guardiola finally gave his view on the club's signing of Haaland after spending weeks dodging questions about the incoming Norwegian, praising his ability and potential to improve in the future.
"It is a decision for the club to make a good sign for the future. He can come for many, many years hopefully and I am pretty sure he will adapt perfectly to our team but for next season,” Guardiola told Sky Sports.
City faced competition from Barcelona, Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain for Haaland's signature after emerging as one of Europe's most lethal marksman. The Norway international has scored 28 goals this season for the Bundesliga outfit but a release clause written into his contract allowed City to swoop in and seal his signature.
Asked if he was excited at the prospect of working with one of the world's most talented players, Guardiola hailed Haaland's ability and insisted the club would help the youngster settle into life in Manchester.
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“I'm excited in my job but of course, the players make you a good manager," he added. "He is an incredible young talent, perfect age. I am pretty sure we are going to help him settle as best possible.”
Man City showed how devastating they could be without a recognised No9 after Kevin De Bruyne scored an incredible four goals in a 5-1 drubbing of Wolves to push them closer towards retaining the Premier League title. Raheem Sterling added a late fifth to put City three points clear and add four more onto their goal difference.
But bringing in Haaland, who has scored 85 goals in 88 appearances for Dortmund, is only likely to improve them further as Guardiola sets his sights on adding the elusive Champions League title to his trophy cabinet at City, having gone 11 years without winning the competition.
