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Erling Haaland scored five of Manchester City’s six goals in a superb individual display as the FA Cup holders thrashed Luton at Kenilworth Road to progress to the quarter-finals.
The leading goal-scorer for the city’s team scored his 27th goal of the season, even though he was absent for nearly two months due to a foot injury. He played a crucial role in his team’s dominant 6-2 win, but a lot of credit also goes to Kevin De Bruyne, who assisted in four of the goals.
Mateo Kovacic added a noteworthy goal himself in the later moments, following Jordan Clark’s two goals before and after the half-time break that brought Luton within one goal of catching up from being down by three. However, it must be said that they were never able to truly challenge City.
In the opening 45 minutes, Pep Guardiola’s team were unstoppable as they tore through Luton from all sides, with De Bruyne and Haaland performing at their peak. They quickly scored their first goal in less than three minutes.
Manuel Akanji played the ball out from the defensive position and passed it to Matheus Nunes, who was in front of him on the left. Nunes outmaneuvered Amari’i Bell and made a smart pass behind Luton’s defense, reaching De Bruyne. He looked up and saw Haaland ready to strike the ball with his left foot, resulting in a powerful goal from 10 yards out.
Teden Mengi of Luton put up a good challenge against Haaland, matching his power and strength in individual battles. However, after 18 minutes, the City striker prevailed and scored a second goal for his team. De Bruyne, who had received the ball from Haaland at midfield, sent it back to him as he made a run. Haaland then beat Mengi and confidently shot the ball through the legs of Tim Krul.
The three goals he needed to achieve nearly came shortly after. John Stones delivered a pass with speed, perfectly finding his teammate’s run, but Tim Krul quickly charged out and denied him. Nunes was the next to have a chance, but he hit wide at the near post after creating space within the box.
5-0
Haaland and De Bruyne proved to be unstoppable as they led City to a 5-0 victory over Luton.
City threatened to run riot. De Bruyne hit a low volley brilliantly beaten out by the right arm of Krul, who was rewarded with good fortune on the rebound when Haaland’s follow-up landed in his gloves.
Luton appealed for offsides on Haaland’s third goal, but VAR determined that he had perfectly timed his run on a pass from substitute Joe Johnson. The confident finish, chipped over an advancing Krul, was a display of skill.
Pep Guardiola seemed to have almost a flawless first half, except for the unfortunate injury of Jack Grealish just before halftime.
Suddenly, to the delight of the spectators at half-time, Luton erupted in a frenzy as Clark expertly netted a goal from 25 yards out, sending the ball spinning into the top corner of Stefan Ortega’s goal.
At the beginning of the second half, they approached City with the same intensity as the reigning champions did at the start of the game. They were quickly given a similar result. Although Clark was in a more challenging position this time, he still attempted a shot towards the goal. Despite the difficult angle, the ball was directed towards the near post and past Ortega, giving them a score of 3-2.
In just three minutes, Kenilworth Road was filled with dreams as Haaland scored his fourth goal for his team. Once again, De Bruyne assisted with a squared pass for an easy tap-in.
Krul was dealt a tough blow by his fifth goal, a left-footed strike that somehow managed to get past him amidst City’s relentless attack. In less than an hour, Haaland had already racked up five goals.
Kovacic recorded a goal, scoring in the 72nd minute to compound Luton’s frustration.
Haaland’s substitution in the final minutes provided a sense of relief. The night belonged to him and Manchester City.
Source: independent.co.uk
