Fernandez Makes Haaland His Personal Project After First Assist
Enzo Fernandez has wasted no time in outlining his priorities at Manchester City. The Argentine midfielder, a Deadline Day arrival from Chelsea in a £125m deal, has declared his intention to feed Erling Haaland for as long as the Norwegian is leading the line.
Speaking after City's 2-0 Champions League win over Porto, Fernandez was typically effusive about his new teammate. "Erling Haaland is an animal. He is a beast, so every time he is on the pitch, I'm going to look for him, and hopefully give him many more assists," he said.
Fernandez had already laid on the opener for Haaland in Portugal, a moment that came after a spell of sustained City pressure. The Blues dominated until that breakthrough, after which things got a little ragged. Maresca was generally happy with the performance level, even if the polish faded after the first goal.
"It is not just about the player he is; he is also an amazing human being, and he has really welcomed me in and helped me."
That warmth, Fernandez says, extends beyond Haaland. He has been struck by how the whole squad has taken him in, and he was quick to thank head coach Enzo Maresca for pushing the move through. There was no sense of a player merely going through the motions in his first weeks at the Etihad.
The immediate dividend arrives this weekend. City head to Old Trafford for a derby against United, who are in Europa Conference League action against Sabah FK on Thursday night. That fixture leaves Maresca's men with a couple of extra days of recovery ahead of the meeting, a small but potentially significant edge in a game that will test the squad's freshness as much as its quality.