Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola starting Erling Haaland and Julian Alvarez up front alongside each other is a ‘frightening thought’, according to BBC pundit Alan Hutton.
The Lowdown: Great starts to life at City
Since arriving at the Etihad this summer, the pair of strikers have enjoyed fantastic starts to their careers with the Premier League champions.
In Man City’s first six top-flight games this season, Haaland has bagged an incredible ten goals, having also netted twice against Sevilla in the Champions League.
Having started just one game, Alvarez has endured a slower start to life than his Norwegian teammate. However, the Argentina international has still been able to score twice in the league, having come off the bench on three occasions.
The Latest: Hutton’s claim
As quoted by Manchester Evening News, Haaland has said his partnership with Alvarez is ‘really important’ going forward for the team.
When asked about the possibility of the pair playing together more regularly this season, Hutton, who works as a pundit for BBC, told Football Insider:
“It is a frightening thought, the two of them together up front.
“I would not like to be in a back four trying to mark those two.
“If they do that though, they’re changing their whole system and their whole philosophy. They have been playing with one striker for years.
“A wide player would have to sit out, whether that be [Jack] Grealish or [Riyad] Mahrez.
“How would they play? 4-4-2? It would be interesting to watch.
“We all know Pep, he likes to throw in a curveball every now and again. I cannot see it at this moment in time though.
“Haaland is going to be number one. We will see how it develops but I cannot see it happening in truth.”
The Verdict: Incredible depth
With Haaland touted as one of the most exciting players to watch in world football, it is crazy to think City were able to secure another incredible young talent this summer on top of the former Borussia Dortmund man.
With the Norway international’s previous experience playing in the Bundesliga, in which he scored 62 goals in 67 appearances, it was always expected that Haaland would be able to have a more instant impact when he joined City.
Alvarez, on the other hand, had only played in the Argentinian top-flight prior to the move, so it was always going to take him more time to adapt to the Premier League and one could even say he has exceeded expectations in his limited minutes thus far.
The thought of the two of them dominating together for the next decade is an exciting one for City fans, but less so for their rivals.