Erling Haaland was unsuccessful in scoring for Man City against Real Madrid as he was locked away most of the time by Antonio Rudiger.
Haaland, the author of 51 goals this season, was silenced by Antonio Rudiger for the entirety of City’s 1-1 draw with Real Madrid at the Bernabeu.
At the beginning of the match, Haaland had two shots towards the home team’s goal, but both were neutralized by goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois. After that, he was barely able to pose a threat as he was locked by Rudiger like a shadow.
Haaland was followed by Rudiger for the whole match
Statistics show that Haaland only had 21 touches of the ball in the whole game, fewer than any other player on the field, behind both goalkeepers Courtois (43) and Ederson (29).
Instead, Man City had to rely on Kevin De Bruyne’s goal to leave the Spanish capital with a draw.
At the end of the match, Marca only gave Haaland 3/10 points, the lowest among the players. In contrast, Rudiger received 10/10 points for his success in keeping Haaland quiet. The Chelsea midfielder has done what not many defenders have done this season when he “pocketed” the Norwegian striker.
Haaland only touched the ball 21 times the whole game
Coach Carlo Ancelotti was full of praise for his defender after the game: “Rudiger was excellent. It was a top performance. He’s so good, a player with experience and great quality. It was not easy but he played very well. I am very happy with Toni.”
Fans on social media also praised Rudiger for the performance:
“I even saw Haaland so thank Rudiger for this advanced session.”
“Rudiger has really played at a high level.”
“Rudiger’s Mastery to Stop Haaland”.
