Haaland, Man City still Champions League contenders

MANCHESTER, England — Pep Guardiola seemed slightly annoyed Wednesday when he said Manchester City are “apparently” not one of the favorites for this season’s UEFA Champions League. It was an answer that hinted he suspects his team has already been written off.

Perhaps it will take more than a 2-0 win over 10-man Napoli, who had Giovanni Di Lorenzo sent off in the first half, to worry the likes of Paris Saint-Germain, Liverpool, Barcelona and Real Madrid. But if you’re going to conquer Europe, beating the champions of Italy in your first game of the league phase isn’t a bad place to start.

“I’m really, really pleased,” Guardiola said after the match. “When it was 11 against 10 we made a really good performance against a team that has the DNA of the Italian teams, defending very well. How aggressive they are, how strong their mentality is.

“I’m really pleased because after 10 against 11 you can be more anxious and in a hurry, but it was completely the opposite. Every pass was with intention and every moment was with intention. Antonio’s teams are always really, really tough to beat.”

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City looked destined to win after just 21 minutes when Di Lorenzo was dismissed for a foul on Erling Haaland. German referee Felix Zwayer initially waved away the City appeals, but Haaland was sure he had been denied a clear goal-scoring opportunity. Haaland jumped up immediately and could be seen mouthing “red card” in the referee’s direction.

Zwayer was sent to the monitor by VAR Christian Dingert, and after a couple of replays, he finally decided he agreed with the Norwegian striker. From that point on, Napoli were up against it.

Napoli manager Antonio Conte did his best to frustrate City. He even cut short Kevin De Bruyne’s Etihad Stadium comeback, sacrificing the Belgian midfielder for defender Mathías Olivera. That and a string of saves from Vanja Milinkovic-Savic helped keep Guardiola’s team at bay until after halftime, when a wonderfully crafted move involving Rodri and Phil Foden broke the deadlock. Foden’s delicate chip over Napoli’s defense was delicious and got the finish it deserved from Haaland. City’s No. 9 caught the flight of the ball perfectly and glanced his header into the net.

Erling Haaland scored his 50th career Champions League goal against Napoli, becoming the second-youngest player to reach that total (behind Kylian Mbappe). Molly Darlington/Copa/Getty Images

It was Haaland’s eighth goal in his past three games after getting five for Norway against Moldova and two against Manchester United on Sunday. It also earned him a place in Champions League history as he became the fastest to reach 50 goals in the competition. He did it in just 49 games, beating the previous record set in 2007 by Ruud van Nistelrooy, who needed 62 games. It’s a remarkable achievement for a player who is still only 25.

City — as Guardiola is clearly aware — are behind Liverpool, Paris Saint-Germain, Arsenal, Barcelona and Real Madrid in the Champions League betting. But with a striker like Haaland, they will always be in with a chance.

Goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma has settled in quickly, Rodri has started three games in a row, and Foden looks like he has rediscovered the zip and the spark missing for much of last season. All three have conquered this competition before.

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City were so comfortable against Napoli that when Jérémy Doku got the second goal on 65 minutes, Guardiola turned his attention to Arsenal. With the game won, Rodri and Haaland were quickly replaced ahead of Sunday’s trip to the Emirates.

“[Haaland’s] numbers speak for themselves,” Guardiola said. “We are lucky to have him. Van Nistelrooy, [Robert] Lewandowski, the two monsters Cristiano [Ronaldo] and [Lionel] Messi. For Erling to be there is unbelievable.

“You cannot imagine how we miss Phil [last season]. The last two games have been the Phil that we know. When he played close to Erling two years ago Phil was the best player in the Premier League.

“He’s dangerous close to the box. We are so happy because I know he is happy and his joy and his life is fine. The rest is natural.”

Napoli were City’s first Champions League opponents when they made their debut in the revamped tournament in 2011. In the 14 years since, City have gone from novices to experts. It culminated in Istanbul in 2023 when they lifted the trophy for the first time.

Last season marked a blip as they lost five of their final seven games — as many as they’d lost in the previous 61 — and failed to reach the last 16 for the time since 2012-13. The drop-off has contributed to a feeling that City are something of an unknown quantity ahead of this season’s campaign, particularly when held up against PSG, Barcelona and the rest.

Speaking this week, Guardiola seemed irked that the bookmakers have forgotten the Champions League pedigree that saw City reach two finals in three years between 2021 and 2023 and another semifinal in 2022. Favorites or not, with Guardiola in charge and Haaland up front, City can never be discounted.