Couple of bad days at office, bit of slack or serious crisis: What's up with Haaland?

One of the things we like about Erling Haaland is that he's as sincere as it gets - a single look on the striker's face can tell you how he is feeling at the moment. Happy, jubilant, worried, dissatisfied, exasperated... Whatever runs through his mind, the Norwegian is willing to show publicly, and in the last few weeks, he seems disappointed and spiritless.

Except for that Cyprus Euro 2024 Qualifiers tie in which he scored a brace, the mesmerizing forward has been on a bumpy ride since late September.

Two Premier League fixtures and one Champions League and Euro 2024 tie - or precisely 270 minutes of football - were not enough for Haaland to find the back of the net!

For a striker of his ilk and reputation, a stat that raises quite a concern, and a few questions (and quite a few jokes, along the way).

Voices could be heard that he's struggling at Manchester City lately due to the absence of Kevin de Bruyne and Rodri, who were feeding him with immaculate passes in the past. Without those balls, Haaland has found himself stranded on the shore and surrounded by a pack of defensive wolves aware of the new reality. With no Rodri nor KDB in sight, the Norwegian's play is becoming increasingly one-dimensional and a bit easier to read (and thus to be denied, of course).

A glimpse of fresh air he felt confronted with deplorable Cyprus centre-backs a few days ago was nothing more than an illusion because the Sunday night tie against Spain in Olso again unfolded just the way Haaland despises.

His until-recent City teammate Aimeric Laporte kept the tall forward away from any danger. A single promising chance Haaland squandered in the later stages of the second half was the only moment we saw him in his wannabe beast mode.

A mere shadow of his former self. And not even Martin Odegaard could make things better for his Norway teammate, who was nowhere near his levels when the two met on opposite sides in the recent Arsenal vs Man City EPL derby.

EURO2024Q: Haaland and Odegaard surrender to Spain, Wales push Croatia to the verge of abyss

Every one of us has had a bad day at the office, or even a handful of them, but when you're as exquisite as Haaland, that slacking is more visible. And with every new game, his frustration gets bigger and bigger, transforming the whole thing into a proper frustration.

His inability to take his national side to a third major tournament in a row definitely affects his confidence and stability. And, further on, widens the gap between his present self and Haaland we're used to seeing.

He'll be able to redeem himself in five days as clubs return to Premier League action, and Manchester City face Roberto de Zerbi's Brighton and Hove Albion.

Pep Guardiola is most definitely aware of Haaland's recent shortcomings and will probably do all he can to 'reinvent' his brutal attacker. His hunger for goals is one-of-a-kind, just like a unique set of skills. Still, it seems he'll need to embrace some new elements to his game: returning a bit in search of a ball, for instance, and exercising a few one-twos with his midfielders to create more goalscoring opportunities. Without them, Haaland looks like a robot from out of this world, malfunctioning on the planet where his qualities and set of skills are inapplicable.