Erling Haaland delivered a stunning performance in Manchester City’s 4-2 pre-season victory over Chelsea in Columbus, with the Norwegian striker scoring a hat-trick to help secure the win. Haaland, 24, capitalized on a series of Chelsea mistakes to give the Premier League champions an early advantage in front of 68,000 fans at Ohio Stadium.
The match started with high intensity as Haaland found the net twice within the first five minutes. The opening goal came after Chelsea’s Tosin Adarabioyo made a loose pass, which was followed by Levi Colwill bringing down Haaland in the box. Haaland coolly converted the fourth-minute penalty after a re-take. Moments later, he intercepted a poorly executed pass from Moises Caicedo to double City’s lead with a composed finish.
City continued their dominance in the second half, with their third goal coming from an error by Raheem Sterling, who inadvertently set up Oscar Bobb to score with a near-post shot in the 55th minute. Just a minute later, Haaland completed his hat-trick after Malo Gusto’s defensive lapse allowed him to slot the ball home once again.
Chelsea managed to respond with two goals of their own. Raheem Sterling volleyed in a cross in the 59th minute, and Noni Madueke added another goal on the counter-attack in the 88th minute. Despite these efforts, Chelsea’s mistakes overshadowed their attacking plays.
After the match, Enzo Maresca, the Chelsea manager, described the game as “strange” and noted that his team performed well despite the errors. Both Maresca and Pep Guardiola attributed the high number of mistakes to the “dry” pitch conditions, which affected ball control.
With this win, Manchester City will return to the UK to face Manchester United in the Community Shield next Saturday. Meanwhile, Chelsea will remain in the United States, where they are set to play against Real Madrid on Tuesday night before hosting Inter Milan at Stamford Bridge next Sunday.
