JAKARTA Manchester City midfielder Ilkay Gundogan said Erling Haaland's arrival in the squad made it more frequent against opponents with a 'bus parking' defense strategy.
City, who is the defending champion of the English Premier League, is no stranger to a team that applies low defense or known for its 'bus parking' against them.
Gundogan said this 'bus parking' strategy could be increasingly used by teams in the English Premier League or the European Champions League to limit Haaland's space for movement when meeting City.
"Maybe the game on Dortmund is a little more open than we usually do here," said Gundogan as quoted from the Independent.
"Maybe it's something [Haaland] should adapt and he has shown that he can do that. Nottingham Forest played defensively and he scored a hat-trick," he added.
Haaland will face former Borussia Dortmund club in the second match of the 2022/2023 European Champions League group stage at the Etihad Stadium this morning. This is the first time he has met Dortmund since leaving the team this summer.
Seeing the productivity of their former striker's goal, Dortmund needs to be vigilant even if they can'mark the bus' on the defense if they don't want their goal to be broken into.
So far the 22-year-old striker has scored 12 goals in just seven games for The Citizen. Two of that number he netted when City beat Sevilla 4-0 on the first matchday of Group G last week.
"We know we have someone who can move behind the defense, but teams will start playing deeper against us maybe also in the Champions League. So, it might be more difficult for us to play the ball behind," Gundongan said.
"It's about patience and choosing the right time to punish the opponent. He will show us more. I think the club has recruited players and individuals who are extraordinary," he continued.
City has in recent years become one of the favorites of the European Champions League since Pep Guardiola's presence. This season they are included in the flagship team again, especially after Haaland's arrival.
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