Manchester City waited a long time to sign Erling Haaland, but Kyle Walker is confident that the striker will live up to his huge reputation.
City completed the £51m signing of Haaland from Borussia Dortmund last month, and the Norwegian goalscorer has been training with his new teammates in the United States ahead of the new season.
The 21-year-old could make his City debut on Wednesday night (1:30am UK time on Thursday) when the Blues take on Club America in Houston in their first pre-season friendly of the summer.
He may not have kicked a ball in anger in sky blue as of yet, but City defender Walker has liked what he's seen of his new teammate so far.
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"Erling [Haaland] has been really good. He’s young, but he’s got a big responsibility and big boots to fill in Aguero," Walker told reporters on Tuesday.
"From what I’ve seen he looks strong, powerful and eager. As long as he keeps his standards, keeps doing what he was doing at Borussia Dortmund and brings the same mentality - he’ll have to adapt to the Premier League which we all know is very difficult, nobody hits the ground running straight away so he's going to need time. But that's down to us as players, manager and the club as a whole to make sure we're making him feel as welcome as possible."
The Club America game will be Haaland's first opportunity to show his new manager and City fans just what he can bring to the side, but it's also a chance for him and his new teammates to step up their preparations for their Premier League title defence.
Walker added: "Fitness wise, [we are] not down too much, but we have to get the engines running. Tomorrow is a big step in the right direction, we have to put on a show."
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