The secret to helping Haaland perfect his running ability

Tord Johnsen Salte and Andreas Ueland are unfamiliar names, even to Norwegian football fans. Salte was at Lyon as a teenager and is starting his career with Norwegian third-place team Arendal. Ueland went to the US on a scholarship to the University of Virginia, before playing for the New England Revolution, then quit his contract after only two months and is still a free agent.

Both Salte and Ueland grew up in Bryne - a small farming town in Southwestern Norway, were both excellent centre-backs for local club FK Bryne's youth team and attracted international scouts' attention. while still a teenager. But according to the British newspaper Sport Mail, the most special thing about these two players is that they both left indelible marks in Haaland's remarkable advancement.

Born in 2000, Haaland is one year younger than Salte and Ueland. At the age of seven, Haaland outperformed the children's peers, and was pushed to compete with older seniors. Here, Haaland's progress slowed down until he was 15 years old, because the striker had to face Salte and Ueland - a highly appreciated central defender pair.

"Haaland really struggled in training sessions. We didn't train him, we just let him play on his own, trying to survive among senior central defenders," said Alf Ingve Bernsten - Bryne youth team coach - told with Sportmail.

Different from the way he and Man City destroyed the current defense, when he was young, Haaland could not overcome the Salte - Ueland pair in the Bryne youth team, so he had to learn to be creative to adapt and keep his footing.

"Against those defenders, Haaland has to be more agile," Bernsten said. "We can't develop Haaland, and he has to do it himself. Haaland should learn on his own rather than let an old man like me tell him where to run. Haaland can develop at his own pace."

The matches at that time helped Haaland improve his sense of space - one of the outstanding qualities that makes him shine today. The second goal in the hat-trick in the reverse win against Crystal Palace 4-2 in August 2022 is proof. At that time, the Norwegian striker retreated to the far post and cushioned the empty net from John Stones' wide kick. Not many players will be in such a position.

And the second goal in the win over Leicester over the weekend showed another quality of Haaland. From Kevin de Bruyne's pass, the 22-year-old striker pushed a touch and then punched the ball diagonally past the goalkeeper - a combination of physicality, positional ability and technique. He equaled Mohamed Salah's record of 32 goals in a 38-round Premier League season, and helped Man City close to Arsenal.

"Haaland always plays by instinct and that's based on experience," Bernsten said. "It's not all about strength and physicality, but technical ability and intelligence, fooling defenders. Haaland reads the situation very well. We have a group of 40 players at Bryne. We are many. when we split each team with 20 people to play, and maybe that helps mentally because Haaland has to adapt to a new situation."

According to Bernsten, Haaland now has a movement similar to when he scored in indoor training sessions when he was 13 years old. He added: "Haaland's style has been like this for many years, with the same movement. Usually, when you meet a stronger opponent, you stop growing. But Haaland always adapts to the next level. And that's not normal."

Haaland's habit of adapting to circumstances from his time in the Bryne youth team also helped Haaland connect easily with De Bruyne after he arrived at Man City. "That connection comes naturally, we don't coach or talk," coach Pep Guardiola said. "We aim for Haaland when he moves and has space. If the ball goes right, Haaland will be unstoppable. Everyone knows that."

Even against opponents who are deep, Haaland knows how to find space. According to Sport Mail, the Norwegian striker has been used to kicking like this since childhood when he had to play in packed practice matches with each team of 20 people at the same time on the field.

"No space is normal when opponents play 5-4-1 and close the gap in the middle. But Haaland still chose the right position at the right time," De Bruyne said of his teammates. According to the Belgian midfielder, Haaland's ability to find space and Man City's priority to control the ball have combined perfectly, allowing them to still create opportunities for the Norwegian striker to shine in front of opponents. majority defense.