Pep Guardiola’s key tactical tweak explains Erling Haaland’s unstoppable Man City form
Erling Haaland continues to prove unstoppable for opposition defences, and that is mainly down to a tweak made in Manchester City’s style.
On Sunday (November 2), Haaland scored a brace against Bournemouth to fire Man City back up to second in the Premier League table.
The Norwegian now has an eye-watering 17 goals in 13 games for City this term, with the 25-year-old producing the best form of his career.
Stuart Pearce didn’t think Haaland would score 30 goals in 2025/26, expecting the former Borussia Dortmund star to decline, and yet, Pep Guardiola’s goal machine is threatening to reach even greater heights.
Man City are playing more long balls in 2025/26
Guardiola’s philosophy at Man City was initially built on controlling possession while requiring patience to unlock opposition defences.
But as teams have started to figure out the Spaniard tactically, he’s adapted his style to outfox the opponent, and the Cityzens have shown they’re not afraid to go more direct.
In their 3-1 win against the Cherries, Haaland exploited Andoni Iraola’s high line for both goals by utilising his strength, pace and power to run in behind.
| Manchester City (Premier League) | Passes | Long Passes | % Long Passes |
| 2022/2023 | 25072 | 1758 | 7% |
| 2025/2026 | 5531 | 361 | 6.5% |
| 2023/2024 | 26251 | 1605 | 6.1% |
| 2024/2025 | 22973 | 1369 | 6% |
As delineated by the above table, 6.5% of City’s passes in 2025/26 are long, and that is their second-highest average since the Norwegian powerhouse joined the club in 2022.
Guardiola’s more direct approach, coupled with an ability to play intricate passes in and around the box, makes Man City extremely unpredictable in the final third.
Haaland is the perfect example of how to play as a lone striker
In the modern era, centre-forwards are coached to be comfortable on the ball and drop deep to link play.
While Haaland can do the above, he’s best used as an out-and-out striker, essentially someone who comes alive when the ball is played in behind or into the box.
| Erling Haaland’s season-by-season record |
| 2022/23 (53 games, 52 goals) |
| 2023/24 (45 games, 38 goals) |
| 2024/25 (48 games, 34 goals) |
| 2025/26 (13 games, 17 goals*) |
The towering forward can go through large spells of matches without being involved or even touching the ball, yet once he does, it invariably leads to a goal.
Haaland scored with his first touch against Monaco in the Champions League. Other strikers may have squandered the chance after not touching the ball for 14 minutes, but his calmness in front of goal is unrivalled.