“I haven’t been good enough” - Erling Haaland opens up after Manchester City suffer 2-1 defeat at Aston Villa

Manchester City star Erling Haaland admitted that he hasn't been 'good enough' following his team's 1-2 loss to Aston Villa in the Premier League on Saturday, December 21.

The four-time defending English champions fell to a sixth top-flight defeat of the season, which further dented their title hopes. They remain nine points behind leaders Liverpool, who have two games in hand over them.

As they've been in recent weeks, City were once again thoroughly exposed at the back, with Jhon Duran and Morgan Rogers firing in fine strikes in either half. Offensively, the holders appeared to lack any flair or flamboyance, with Phil Foden only pulling one back in the stoppage time.

Haaland, though, continued to disappoint with his performances. The Norwegian icon failed to muster a single effort on target, while also drawing a blank in the cross and key pass columns.

After netting 10 times in their opening five league games, Haaland has struck only thrice more over the next 12, and just once in their last six. Following another poor showing today, the 24-year-old opened up on his struggles after the game.

Speaking to the press, he said (via City Xtra on X):

"First I'm looking at myself, I haven't been doing things good enough, I haven't been scoring my chances. I have to do better, I haven't been good enough..."

For most of their match today, Haaland was isolated, devoid of proper service, and struggling to get himself back into the game. He only had eight touches in the first 40 minutes of the clash.

His struggles are a microcosm of bigger issues facing City right now, as the side have gone completely off the boil over the last two months. But the former Borussia Dortmund hitman rallied his side to continue working their way back to form.

He added (via City Xtra on X):

"[Aston Villa] are good players, it's difficult to come here but we're #ManCity we should be out there. We have to continue, we have to believe and we have to keep working hard. We have to continue..."

Manchester City will next face Everton in the league on Boxing Day.

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Manchester City star Haaland remains Premier League's top scorer

With 13 goals, Erling Haaland remains the English top-flight's joint-best scorer alongside Liverpool ace Mohamed Salah. It's truly a testament to his goalscoring exploits, as the Norwegian remains unsurpassed despite his struggles of late.

He had begun the season with a banger, netting in each of their first five league game of the season and bagging 10 goals overall. The remarkable tally included back-to-back hat-tricks against Ipswich Town and West Ham.

But over the last two months, the striker's form has waned, much like the entire City's squad. All's not lost yet, though, as Haaland is still very much in contention for the Golden Boot. He just needs to find his shooting boots and start firing.