“It’s like playing rugby” – Defender explains nightmare of facing Manchester City

Manchester City striker Erling Haaland has left quite an impression on Jakub Kiwior after their recent meeting with Porto.

The former Arsenal defender had the unenviable job of dealing with Haaland and has now explained what that actually feels like. Apparently, it’s closer to rugby than football at times.

Speaking to Polish channel Sportowy, Kiwior picked out the Manchester City star’s physical strength as one of his biggest problems.

“He’s a world-class striker, with hundreds of goals,” Kiwior said. “When I’m a centre-back and I see Haaland running towards me, I feel like I’m playing rugby.”

“He’s very strong physically, has excellent positioning and the ball always seems to find him. He’s difficult to mark, but these are the challenges that make us grow.”

Haaland gives defenders a very different problem

There’s no great revelation in hearing that Haaland is strong. Watching him charge towards you from centre-back is obviously a scary sight.

His movement and positioning mean defenders rarely get much of a break. Even when Haaland isn’t directly involved, there’s always the threat of the ball eventually finding him.

Manchester City came out on top against Porto, although the defender was reasonably happy with his own display.

“I felt good on the ball and confident. When things go well at the start, you gain confidence to take more risks,” he explained.

“The result wasn’t the best, but the individual performance and the team’s attitude against a great team leave positive signs. If we correct a few details, we can compete with anyone.”

That’s a fairly upbeat assessment after coming up against City and Haaland.

Kiwior may have enjoyed the challenge and believes it will help him improve. His description of seeing the Norwegian running at him, though, perhaps says a little more about the experience.