Erling Haaland continues to blow his Manchester City teammates away with his terrific run of form - but that wasn't always the case behind the scenes.
Jack Grealish, who's one of the lucky Etihad stars to play alongside the striking sensation week in, week out, has admitted that his first time training with Haaland wasn't the spectacle that he'd had in mind. Having expected the 22-year-old Norwegian to "score every shot," it was only in the Citizens' pre-season friendlies when Grealish's hopes for Pep Guardiola's new signing became reality.
"Do you know what, it's funny because when he's in like the boxes and stuff I always banter him and say 'Mate, come on, liven up,'" Grealish began, in a typically candid interview with BT Sport. "When he first came, I remember it was a training session in America and we were doing shooting and stuff, the strikers, and he scored with some nice goals, but he didn't like bag loads.
"I thought he was going to score every shot and I was like 'OK'. But as soon as we got into these games, he didn't score against Liverpool, but after that… He has this mentality where he doesn't care what anyone says about him or anything and all he wants to do is score goals, if you put the ball in the box he's there."
Haaland has already racked up a whopping 17 goals over his first 11 appearances for City, including three hat-tricks in as many top-flight home games. The latest came during City's 6-3 drubbing of bitter rivals Manchester United in their derby demolition on Sunday, affirming his status as a bona fide superstar.
But it's not just Haaland's heroics on a matchday that impress teammates like Grealish. The English playmaker has also praised the ex- Borussia Dortmund hitman for his impact off the pitch. "He's ridiculous," Grealish, who was the Citizens' marquee signing last summer, went on to say.
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"And on top of it all he's such a lovely guy, he's great to have around, all the staff love him, and I can't speak highly enough of him. He's one of the best finishers in world football and his numbers so far speak for themselves!"
They do indeed, as Haaland is well on his way to winning the Premier League golden boot in his maiden campaign. Manager Guardiola is loving having the Norway international as his No.9, claiming that "no one" at his age can compete with him.
"The numbers speak for themselves," the Citizens boss declared ahead of Wednesday's Champions League group-stage clash with Copenhagen. "In the locker room, and on the pitch, we see things that are not in the stats that make us happy to have him here."
