RB Leipzig defender Benjamin Henrichs admits the ‘brutal’ Erling Haaland was too hot to handle as the striker’s five-star showing fired Manchester City to a 7-0 Champions League obliteration at the Etihad Stadium, speaking to BT Sport.
Remember when Usain Bolt was at the peak of his powers? When the 100 metre World Record holder would cruise to victory so effortlessly that he would almost appear to jog over the finish line?
Well that’s almost how it felt when Pep Guardiola subbed Haaland off to a standing ovation with just over an hour on the clock on Wednesday night. Norway’s footballing Thor-ce had already done his night’s work by then, of course. Just the five goals. The first player ever to hit a quintet in an UCL fixture apart from (guess who?) Lionel Messi against Bayer Leverkusen 11 years ago last week.
“I think we were eaten up out there,” sighed a battered and battle-scarred Henrichs. “I’ve never lost 7-0 in my career. It’s a totally brutally bitter evening for us.
“(Haaland) is a brutally physical player. He’s difficult to defend and brings so much to the game. The way he played today says a lot about his quality.”
Erling Haaland hits five as Manchester City hammer RB Leipzig
It took Haaland just 35 minutes to make Champions League history against a Leipzig side who, barring a recent defeat to Borussia Dortmund, have been in largely excellent form since Marco Rose took over from Domenico Tedesco.
Further strikes from Ilkay Gundogan and a supposedly out-of-sorts Kevin de Bruyne sealed City’s very own ‘Magnificent Seven’, a set up a potential quarter-final meeting with the likes of Bayern Munich, Inter Milan or Real Madrid.
“Man City were too good for us today,” adds Rose. “And they more than deserved their win.
“There were two reasons behind our defeat today. One was our aggression in duels at set pieces. And the other was that we didn’t find any solutions against their press when we had possession. In that regard, I also take responsibility because maybe I didn’t give the team enough instructions.
“We never got into the game in any way. The result is very tough to take.”
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