Michael Owen suggests that Erling Haaland is not meeting expectations in terms of scoring goals.

Erling Haaland, the Manchester City striker, has come under scrutiny from former footballer Michael Owen for his performance in front of goal this season. Despite scoring 29 goals in 32 games across all competitions, including a goal in City’s recent UEFA Champions League victory over FC Copenhagen, Owen believes that Haaland has not been as clinical as some of Europe’s top strikers.

Owen stated that if his life depended on it, he would choose Harry Kane over Haaland in a finishing contest. He acknowledged Haaland’s ability to score important goals but emphasized that the Norwegian striker has not been as composed in front of goal as expected.

Looking at the data, Haaland’s goal-scoring statistics this season have been slightly below par. Last season, he averaged 1.17 goals per game with an expected goals (xG) value of 0.93. However, this season, he has only managed 0.88 goals per game with an xG of 1.02.

Owen explained that xG is a measure of the predicted score, with a penalty having a 0.79 chance of resulting in a goal. Haaland’s xG this season indicates that he should have scored more goals in the Premier League and the Champions League, based on the chances he has been given.

Pep Guardiola, the Manchester City manager, also acknowledged Haaland’s lack of sharpness in recent games. Guardiola mentioned that Haaland played the full game against FC Copenhagen to regain his rhythm. Owen highlighted a missed chance by Haaland in the Manchester United game as evidence of his current underperformance.

Owen’s point was supported by a graphic that showed Haaland as the only leading scorer in Europe’s top five leagues who is underperforming his xG this season. In contrast, players like Kane, Mbappe, Martinez, and Bellingham are all exceeding their expected goal tallies.

While Haaland has been efficient in previous seasons, this year he has struggled to meet expectations. Owen attributed this to a possible injury and subsequent rustiness. However, he believes that Haaland is building towards becoming a more efficient goal scorer.

In conclusion, Haaland’s performance in front of goal has been a topic of discussion, with Owen and Guardiola both acknowledging his underperformance compared to previous seasons. Despite his impressive goal tally, Haaland’s efficiency in converting chances has been below par, according to the data.