Manchester City striker Erling Haaland dismissed the suggestion Arsenal suffered an early ‘slip up’ in the Premier League title race after they drew 1-1 with Brighton.
Arsenal looked on course to clinch their third successive victory after Kai Havertz gave the Gunners a first-half lead at the Emirates Stadium.
But Declan Rice’s controversial red card just after half time gave Brighton hope and the visitors then scored an equaliser through Joao Pedro.
Recent titles races have shown Man City’s challengers can barely afford to drop any points but Haaland believes talk of ‘slip-ups’ at this stage is premature.
Haaland scored his second hat-trick in as many games to help Manchester City beat West Ham 3-1 at the London Stadium in Saturday’s late kick-off, giving Pep Guardiola’s side a two-point lead at the top of the Premier League ahead of tomorrow’s fixtures, which include Manchester United v Liverpool.
Golden Boot winner Haaland was interviewed live on Sky Sports after City’s win but shook his head and laughed at Kelly Cates’ suggestion that Arsenal had ‘slipped up’ earlier in the day.
‘They haven’t slipped up yet,’ the Norwegian superstar said. ‘Do not use these words, please.’
Haaland, who already has seven goals this season, added: ‘Three points is the most important thing so I’m happy. I feel good, I feel energised.
‘I had a long vacation and pre-season. I feel good. The years I’ve been here have been really fast. Now I’ve got some rest in my body and my feet. Now I’m ready for more.
‘Only footballers know how important it is to have a break. You need to calm your body and mind down because it’s a long season. It’s not as easy as people think. I feel fresh and that’s the most important thing.
‘Three games, nine points, it’s a great start. Let’s not get too far ahead because there are potentially 70 more games this season. Let’s take it game by game.’
Guardiola described Haaland’s performance against West Ham as ‘unbelievable’ and praised his goalscoring instinct.
‘From the beginning he was unbelievable,’ the Man City boss said. ‘The second goal, even the first. The third goal is something unique.
‘With this mindset he has, everything he can do. The numbers with the short age and the games he’s played. He’s loved for what he does on the pitch.
‘You have to let him do what he wants. He scored three goals today but he didn’t lose one ball. Today is one of the games where he has played the best in all situations.
‘When you see the games and see what we want to do, he understands because he is a smart guy. He wants to score goals.’
On Manchester City’s performance in east London, Guardiola added: ‘We played really good. West Ham are always dangerous.
‘[Lucas] Paqueta can attack with [Mohammed] Kudus, the sense of danger is never over. We played really well, it was an unfortunate goal against.
‘The second half was more open but we controlled it better and the performance is good. Officially the pre-season is now over.
‘We played one game a week and it was a super season. Now they play two a week.’
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