"Worst player on the pitch by a country mile" - Fans rip into Manchester City star for 'garbage' performance in 1-1 draw against Real Madrid

Manchester City striker Erling Haaland was heavily criticized by fans for his performance against Real Madrid in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League semifinal at the Santiago Bernabeu. The clash ended in a 1-1 draw.

Vinicius Junior opened the scoring for the hosts with a scorcher from outside the box in the 36th minute. Kevin De Bruyne matched the quality of Vinicius' goal when he equalized for the reigning English champions in the 67th minute.

Haaland, however, was not at his best during the game. The Norwegian attacker has been the season's outstanding performer in European football. He has scored 51 goals and provided eight assists in 47 matches across competitions this season.

Haaland boasts a spectacular record in the Champions League as well, with 12 goals in nine matches in the competition this season. However, the 22-year-old failed to convince fans with his display against Los Blancos in the first leg on Tuesday, May 9.

While he managed two shots on target, Haaland only had 21 touches over the course of the 90 minutes and completed only nine passes during the game.

Fans criticized the striker for his display, with one of them writing:

"Worst player on the pitch by a country mile Haaland total garbage."

Real Madrid and the Manchester City will lock horns in the second leg on May 17. With the first leg ending in a stalemate, there is all to play for at the Etihad.

Here are some of the best reactions from Twitter after the Manchester City striker's disappointing display in the first leg against Real Madrid:

"He's an obvious danger" - Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti about Manchester City's Erling Haaland ahead of the first leg

While it is evident that Erling Haaland is Manchester City's biggest goal threat, Carlo Ancelotti was wary of the threat that City as a team pose to their opponents.

City have immense quality in their ranks and Haaland is just a piece of the puzzle. Ancelotti pointed that fact out, telling the media before the clash at the Bernabeu (via GOAL):

"Haaland is a very dangerous player. He's an obvious danger. But only talking about Haaland means not talking about a complete team that plays well, that attacks, that has ideas. We aren't planning how to play Haaland, but rather to play a team that looks unstoppable. I think we can have a chance to play an even, competitive game, and we can win."

Real Madrid will have a great chance of qualifying for the final for the second year in a row if they can nullify Haaland's threat at the Etihad as well. Manchester City, on the other hand, will be hoping to avenge their semifinal exit from last year's Champions League at the hands of Los Blancos.