Erling Haaland interview: Man City striker on his playing style and motivation
Monday, September 7, 2026
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"I don't like to miss chances, I don't like to lose," the Norwegian striking phenomenon tells UEFA as he talks through his playing style and shares some advice for young players.
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During the summer, Erling Haaland played at his first World Cup finals and has returned to action with a new short haircut, but there's no change in his extraordinary ability in front of goal, or the delight he takes in scoring for Manchester City.
With 57 goals, the 26-year-old is already in the top ten all-time scorers in the world's top club competition, and as he aims to win the Champions League for a second time (having featured in City's triumphant 2022/23 side), the Norwegian gave some insight into his game, and some advice for young players.
This interview was conducted on 7 May 2026.
On his characteristics as a footballer
When I was young, I was a striker. I wanted the ball in behind, I wanted to score goals. And now, I'm an older player, and I'm trying to do the same things as I did then when I was young – of course, with a bit different physical attributes. But, Erling Haaland is a guy that loves football, loves scoring goals, loves to smile, enjoy football, and is kind of living the dream, playing in the Champions League, playing in the Premier League, playing for Man City.
I'm tall, so I can be a bit clumsy sometimes. But, the way of looking like I'm going to lose the ball, but still managing to get the ball with me – I think that's something I like because it's a part of me. I'm out of balance, but I'm not fully out of balance; these kinds of things, I think, are a bit me.
On where he positions himself during a game
Whatever [the coach] says, I will do. Of course, in the heat of the moment, as a striker, you need to kind of feel and smell what you think could help the team. Normally, my job is to be on the last line, trying to finish the attacks. That's my main role, and what I try to do, and I try to do my best, [is] putting the ball in the back of the net. That's my main focus.
On how he gets the better of defenders
If the defender is looking, he looks at you, there's a second where he doesn't look at you, that's when you need to attack, and then you have a second on him and if I have a second on someone, I'm normally fast enough and have [good enough timing] to get the ball. There are many different kinds of battles in a football game, and it's about staying sharp. You don't know what the next minute in a football game is going to bring, so no matter what happens, you need to stay focused.
On seizing opportunities
It can [sometimes be that] I don't touch the ball a lot, and then it's even more important to stay focused and don't think of touching the ball – think of doing your job, what you can do. We practice in training what to do. It's about following the game plan.
When a midfielder or winger has the ball, I need to go in his head and think of what he is going to do, and that is sometimes a difficult thing. Sometimes I know what he is going to do, and sometimes I have no idea what he is going to do, and then I just have to guess! But the best thing is when you can go into the winger's head, knowing exactly what he is going to do, and he puts the ball exactly where you wanted, and you put the ball in the back of the net.
On the secret to good finishing
What is a good finish? There is no answer to that; you just need to hit it enough so that the keeper cannot get it.
If I'm facing the goal, and I'm getting the ball towards me, I'm quite confident that I will score. A first-time finish is a really good thing because the keeper [doesn't] get to think. With one touch, he kind of gets a little bit to think. With plenty [of] touches, he gets a lot of time to think, but maybe he's not sure of what to do. [Lionel] Messi is the greatest ever example of this – taking one, two, three, four, five, six, seven [touches] and then he scores because the keeper [has] no idea of what he's going to do.
On playing on the break
When [a transition] starts, the first thing I'm thinking of is looking around at the defenders, and then I look at my team-mates, and then I look at the space, and after that, I take a decision of where to try to get the ball in a position where I can score. Have I said 'I hate being offside'? Yeah, I don't like it at all because when you're offside, in the end, nothing will happen. You need to have the right timing, you need to prepare well – where the centre-backs are, if they will go higher, if they will drop – you need to time [it].
On getting physical with opponents
It's a really physical game now – it becomes more and more physical for every day that goes [by]. It's about just feeling what you think is right, and if you think something is right, go for it. I like a physical battle. I think it's a great thing. When I watched – when I was young – [Didier] Drogba against Nemanja Vidić or [Rio] Ferdinand, it's amazing. Some battles are just amazing to watch, as long as it [doesn't] get dragged too far.
On dealing with the disappointment of a missed chance during a game
When I was really young, I was not happy at all if I'd missed a chance or we didn't win, and I think it's still with me: I don't like to miss chances, I don't like to lose. I want to win, but you need to have balance; how to react in the game, after the game. If you can use the negative things in football [as] motivation, that can be an amazing thing. It's about controlling yourself. Don't [over]think. I have a mother and father; I have a girlfriend and a kid. In the end, life is still good if you miss a chance – but I would love to score the chance.
On his advice for young players
Try to do things that make you smile. When I was young, what made me smile was scoring goals, winning football games. I wanted to do it more. I wanted to score more goals, which also gave me motivation to, [at] the weekends, go and play football with my friends because that was so fun, and I enjoyed it so much. It's about finding something that makes you happy. If you have a smile [on] your face, you can go as far as you just want to.