Pep Guardiola has summed up how Erling Haaland has overcome his recent fitness issues to feature heavily for Manchester City since the start of the season.
On a day when the Premier League champions were far from their best, one of the few positives for Pep Guardiola in an end-to-end clash with Newcastle was none other than Erling Haaland.
Haaland netted the winner in City's 1-0 win over Bayern Munich in pre-season, tapping home from Jack Grealish's squared delivery into the area.
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On his Premier League debut against West Ham at the London Stadium, the Norwegian grabbed a fine brace to announce his arrival to the English top-flight.
The Leeds-born striker, who joined City for £51 million this summer, set up Ilkay Gundogan for the opener last week against Bournemouth as Guardiola's side cruised to a 4-0 victory.
Ahead of a midweek charity friendly with Barcelona, Haaland was given his third start in as many league games alongside Phil Foden and Bernardo Silva.
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The 22-year-old looked sharp from the get go against Newcastle on Sunday, dropping constantly between the lines and efficiently linking up play for the visitors.
A standout moment emerged in the first half, when Haaland held off a few challenges to play a clever outside-the-boot through ball to Kevin De Bruyne that nearly gave City a two-goal cushion.
Wreaking havoc with his intelligent movement, the young marksman made an impact on a day when City's defence was breached heavily by Newcastle's potent frontline.
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Haaland was inches away from reducing the deficit when Nick Pope expertly cushioned his right-footed effort away as Manchester City trailed 3-1 after Miguel Almiron, Callum Wilson and Kieran Trippier struck for the Magpies.
However, his good work was finally rewarded in the 60th minute as Haaland slotted in a venomous volley to halve the deficit and score his third goal of the campaign.
His movement to drag defenders deep to allow Bernardo Silva significant room for the leveller soon after was pivotal as Kevin De Bruyne sliced open the Newcastle defence to find the Portuguese.
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Though Newcastle's valiant display against the Premier League champions grabbed the headlines, Haaland has shown encouraging signs with his movement with every passing game.
Having spent a significant chunk of his final season in Germany on the sidelines, the Norway international has done well to recover from his fitness struggles and start fresh in Manchester.
Pep Guardiola was quizzed on how Haaland has managed to overcomes his tussles with injury and start each of Manchester City's Premier League games so far this season.
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“Good food, good rest. People say the apartment he’s bought has a good bed," said Guardiola.
City showed why they are the reigning champions by fighting back from a two-goal deficit to nearly stealing a late winner at St. James' Park.
Guardiola was pleased with his side's reaction and highlighted their title-winning comeback against Aston Villa on the final day of last season as proof that City will fight until the very end.
The 51-year-old added: "After what happened against Aston Villa, where we scored three goals in five minutes, I can rely on anything.”
Topics: Manchester City, Premier League, Erling Haaland, Pep Guardiola, Newcastle United, West Ham United, Bournemouth, Borussia Dortmund, Bundesliga
Srinivas Sadhanand