When Erling Haaland arrived at Manchester City in the summer, he spoke about his excitement at lining up alongside England international Phil Foden. The Norwegian striker was full of praise for the City man - but insisted that the 22-year-old could get even better as a player.
Haaland, who signed for Pep Guardiola 's side from Borussia Dortmund for £51million, had lauded Foden previously, with the pair coming face-to-face at youth level. They also shared a brief conversation on the Etihad pitch after City 's Champions League victory over Dortmund in the Champions League last year.
In his first interview after completing his transfer to the Premier League champions, Haaland described Foden as an 'amazing player', while also suggesting that needed to improve aspects of his game.
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While it is no surprise that the 22-year-old forward was backing his new teammate to continue developing, the gauntlet had been set. Haaland was excited to play alongside Foden, and knew that he could help the talented youngster to improve and better his statistical output.
"I have been watching a lot of City games for as long as I can remember," said Haaland after signing for City in the summer.
"Of course, then I also watched Phil and he is an amazing player. He is still a talent because he is still young, but he is an amazing player. He still has to develop and then we can really talk."
Foden was quick to return the favour and tell the Norwegian how he could also reach his full potential at the Etihad. The Englishman, who came through the ranks at City, was confident that he could build a strong relationship with the forward, but insisted that Haaland would have to work hard like the rest of his new teammates.
He told Sky Sports: "I'm looking forward to it, he's a massive signing for us, next season he'll help us a lot.
"We seem to have a lot of scorers, maybe it's down to the rotation but we're so good as a team. Maybe we don't have individual players. We work hard as a team, and believe in each other.
"Obviously it’s a great addition to the team. He’s one of the best finishers in world football at the moment.
"He’s going to be great for us next season and hopefully he can help us. It's definitely such a big signing for the club. We've played without a striker this year and still done very well. He's going to be a great addition.
"We’re still trying to focus on this season because he's not going to be here until next. The main focus is this season, hopefully he can help next. He’s got a lot of physicality, loves to run in behind. I think it’ll definitely be good for our game."
It became clear, quite quickly, that Haaland and Foden were a match made in heaven. The pair — who had challenged each other to become the best version of themselves this season — did not take long to link up on the pitch, with Guardiola's men winning four of their opening six Premier League matches and securing victory in their first Champions League game of the season.
Haaland has scored 12 goals and registered one assist in his first eight matches as a City player — which has included two hat-tricks. Meanwhile, Foden, who has also made eight appearances, has helped himself to two goals and two assists.
The Norwegian striker was always going to score goals for City, it just felt inevitable. However, as well as his incredible goalscoring ability, his capacity to help his teammates improve their individual output has also been impressive.
Kevin De Bruyne has assisted Haaland on three occasions already this campaign, with Foden setting up City's No.9 once so far.
Foden's assist for Haaland — which came in the 4-2 victory over Crystal Palace — was a perfect demonstration as to why the Norwegian will score so many goals this term. It was put on a plate for the frontman, who made no mistake with his finish. While Foden has only assisted his teammate once, the signs are clear as to how the pair of helping each other develop and improve.
Against Sevilla, Foden delivered arguably his best performance of the season so far. As well as scoring a goal, he showed exactly why he is one of the first names on the team sheet - despite still being just 22. His link-up with Haaland was another positive, with the duo growing in confidence in every game. Foden played with maturity and freedom, while Haaland continued to do what he does best.
Last season, Foden registered 14 goals and 11 assists as Guardiola's men retained the Premier League title. While it was certainly a season to remember for the youngster, he is a player that is obsessed with bettering himself — and the presence of Haaland is only going to help him with that this season.
It might prove to the case that Foden's goal tally drops from last term, which would not be completely surprising given the striker City now have in attack. The better way of measuring his individual success at the end of the campaign might be to look at his assists, and it is a safe bet to suggest that a number of them will be converted by Haaland.
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