Borussia Dortmund centre-half Nico Schlotterbeck believes he knows how to stop Erling Haaland from scoring ahead of his side's Champions League meeting with Manchester City on Wednesday evening.
Pep Guardiola's side welcome Dortmund to the Etihad Stadium a week on from their opening group-stage clash in Seville that finished 4-0 in favour of the Premier League champions.
Manchester City beat the German side over two legs in the quarter-final two seasons ago en route to their first-ever Champions League final, which ended in defeat against Chelsea in Porto.
Lady Luck did not shine on the Blues in Europe again last term as City crashed out in the semi-final against eventual champions Real Madrid courtesy of a late collapse at the Santiago Bernabeu.
Advert
City's European stars could finally align in Guardiola's seventh season in England following the summer signing of Erling Haaland from Borussia Dortmund.
Haaland, who joined the Blues for a reported fee of £51 million, has dominated the headlines since the beginning of his debut campaign in Manchester.
The Norwegian has netted 12 times in just eight competitive appearances for the six-time Premier League champions ahead of a reunion with his former club in the Champions League on Wednesday.
However, with the spotlight largely on how the 22-year-old forward will fare against familiar opposition, Dortmund defender Nico Schlotterbeck believes he knows how to get the better of the Norwegian.
Advert
Schlotterbeck managed to prevent Haaland from finding the net in Freiburg’s 2-1 win over Dortmund in the Bundesliga in 2021 before joining Die Borussen this summer.
“In that game (Freiburg's 2-1 win over Dortmund), I realised how good I can be,” Schlotterbeck said in an interview with Kicker, as translated and relayed by Sport Witness.
“I know how to stop Erling Haaland. We have to stop them (Manchester City) as a whole, Erling is the least of our problems," the German added to Sport1.
Haaland boasts an enviable record in the Champions League heading into the game against Dortmund, with 25 strikes in 20 outings in Europe's elite club competition since he burst onto the scene at RB Salzburg in 2020.
Advert
Dortmund skipper Marco Reus understands how difficult it could be to keep Haaland off the scoresheet on Wednesday and has been impressed by the stunning start his former teammate has made to life at City.
Reus said, as quoted by The Guardian: “It’s simply sensational how he (Haaland) is performing at the moment in Manchester. It helps that his teammates are not the worst!"
It remains to be seen if Dortmund, where Haaland spent two-and-a-half seasons between 2020 and 2022, could put a halt to the Leeds-born striker's scoring exploits when they face their former man in sky blue.
Advert
“How do you stop him? Good question. It’s not easy to stop him," Reus added. "One of the keys is not to be too late with your decisions, to be good at anticipating what is going to happen.
"You have to stay close to him to be able to stop him as much as possible for 90 minutes. Then you just have to hope he doesn’t have his best day.”
Featured Image Credit: AlamyTopics: Manchester City, Premier League, Erling Haaland, UEFA, Champions League, Borussia Dortmund, Bundesliga, Football
