Manchester City’s star striker Erling Haaland has lauded manager Pep Guardiola after winning the UEFA Champions League (UCL) on Saturday.
City won their first UCL title after beating Inter Milan 1-0, thanks to a strike by Rodri, in the final in Istanbul.
"It's such a big game, the pressure is unbelievable, you all know that. To work with Pep is really special,” Haaland was quoted as saying by mancity.com
“We have a good relationship and he's helped me a lot. I look forward to developing even more.
“I'm still young, I have a lot of years left.
“To be getting trained by him every day, the best coach in the world, it's a good place to be.”
Pep Guardiola has won the treble for the second time in his managerial career, while he's the first ever manager to do so with two different clubs (Barcelona in 2008-09 and Manchester City in 2022-23).
Haaland, who scored 52 goals in all competitions this season, was also ecstatic about winning Europe’s top competition at a young age.
"[It’s] Unbelievable. In my wildest dreams I would never think of this as a 22-year-old me to be honest,” he said.
“But it shows that it's possible for a guy from a small town in Norway.
“This also gives, I think, motivation to other young people in my same kind of situation playing football in the indoor hall in my hometown.
"We have to defend what we achieved this season. That's how it works.
“In a month, two months everything is forgotten and we have to attack it again."
Manchester City became the sixth English team to win the European Cup/UEFA Champions League, after Aston Villa, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester United and Nottingham Forest – twice as many sides than any other nation (3 – Germany, Italy and Netherlands).