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Chris Sutton has defended Manchester City striker Erling Haaland after Roy Keane compared him to a League Two player following their 0-0 draw against Arsenal over the weekend. Instead, he took aim at Kevin De Bruyne, Phil Foden, and Bernardo Silva for not creating enough chances for Haaland.
The BBC Sport columnist also backed the Cityzens to defeat Aston Villa in their upcoming Premier League clash at the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday, April 3.
Haaland had a performance to forget against the Gunners as he failed to make an impact. He completed just seven passes in 90 minutes, created zero chances, and registered zero shots on target. This led to Roy Keane launching a scathing attack on him following the game, stating that his general play is at the level of a League Two footballer.
Manchester City are currently third in the standings with 64 points from 29 games, three points behind leaders Liverpool. In contrast, Aston Villa are fourth with 59 points and will be fancying their chances of securing a positive result as they won the reverse fixture 1-0 in December.
However, Sutton expects the Cityzens to win. He wrote (via BBC Sport):
"I thought some of the criticism of Manchester City striker Erling Haaland after Sunday's draw with Arsenal was well over the top. It is not Haaland's fault City did not create enough opportunities for him - it is down to players such as Kevin De Bruyne, Phil Foden and Bernardo Silva to make those chances."
Sutton added:
"To compare Haaland to a League Two player, which is how Roy Keane described him on Sky, is just ridiculous. It doesn't matter who gets the goals against Aston Villa, but City cannot allow the gap to leaders Liverpool to get any bigger than three points."
"Villa will make it tough for them and carry plenty of attacking threat themselves, but this is a must-win for Pep Guardiola's side... and I think they will win."
Sutton's Prediction: 2-1
Roy Keane changes his Premier League title winners prediction and explains why he thinks Manchester City will no longer win
Manchester United legend Roy Keane believes Liverpool are now the favorites to win the Premier League title following their 2-1 win against Brighton & Hove Albion on Sunday, March 31. He also outlined why he lost faith in Manchester City despite backing them for the entire season until now.
Jurgen Klopp's men came back from behind to secure an important win against Brighton at Anfield. Meanwhile, the Cityzens were held to a 0-0 draw against Arsenal at home, giving the Reds a two-point cushion at the top of the table.
Keane told Sky Sports (via METRO):
"I think Liverpool, I’d have them favourites. Arsenal second favourites with their goal difference. City with their injuries and the strain of everything – Champions League coming up, same as Arsenal – [third favourites]."
He continued:
"Every time I watch Liverpool, we can look at one or two faults they might have, but they get so many chances every game, they’re going to score lots of goals. I’ve said Man City but what I’ve seen recently, I’m going to go with Liverpool."
Following their game against Aston Villa, Manchester City will face Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park on Saturday, April 6.
