Erling Haaland fired Manchester City from a penalty in the 95th minute to win against Fulham FC on Saturday. The match winner then spoke about his enormous nervousness.
“It was one of the most nervous moments of my life,” said the 22-year-old Norwegian Sky Sports about the seconds before the penalty: “I was injured for a week and it was really important to win.”
Julian Alvarez (17th) had given City the lead, who were outnumbered from the 26th minute because of a red card after an emergency brake against Joao Cancelo. Andreas Pereira (28th) equalized from the point for Fulham before Haaland made the decision in added time.
“He had to take his time. He had to take the ball, the wait for the penalty was long, he thought a lot,” said city coach Pep Guardiola: “Two or three weeks without training, without rhythm and this pace. The penalty wasn’t the best penalty I’ve seen in my life, but he took it hard.”
The Spaniard then amazed with a curious penalty calculation: “I always say to Riyad Mahrez: If you shoot him softly to one side, there is a 50:50 chance that he will be in. If you shoot hard, it is 75:30. Sorry, I mean 75:50. I’m not a genius at math.”
For Haaland, who came on as a substitute against Fulham in the 64th minute, it was the 23rd goal in Manchester’s 17th competitive game. Most recently, the former Dortmunder had to sit out due to a bruised foot.
