Tuesday’s fixture could be the biggest game of the Norwegian’s career, with Borussia Dortmund’s Bundesliga title hopes on the line
Erling Haaland says he isn’t fazed by the prospect of facing Bayern Munich’s star-studded squad in Tuesday’s Klassiker, arguably the biggest game of his career to date.
Dortmund host Bayern needing a win to close the four-point gap at the top of the Bundesliga, with only six more matches to play after the derby game.
It was pointed out to Haaland that in the likes of Manuel Neuer, Jerome Boateng and Benjamin Pavard, Bayern’s defence is full of World Cup winners – but the teenager isn’t feeling the pressure.
“No [pressure doesn’t bother me]. I like to play these games and that’s what I like the most, to be honest,” Haaland told Dortmund’s YouTube channel.
“I’m looking forward to a game against a very good Bayern side.
“I try to be as calm as possible and not think too much about the game. They have World Cup winners, but we also have that.
“I know we have a good team, but Bayern also have a good team, so it will be an interesting game.
“I see every team-mate every day in training and I see how good they actually are and it’s all about getting that out as a team to achieve our goals, so I’m looking forward to the game.”
In Mats Hummels and Mario Gotze, Dortmund do indeed have world champions of their own.
That didn’t help them in their last Klassiker encounter. An own goal from Hummels capped off a 4-0 win for Bayern in November, with the Bavarians having chalked up some dominant victories in recent seasons.
But it seems there is little that makes Haaland nervous, and he is confident in the ability of himself and his team-mates to make amends on Tuesday.
“First of all is to try to play our best as a team because I know how much quality we have in the team,” he said.
“When we show that, we create chances and play like a fantastic team. For me, my job is to score goals, of course.
“You’ve seen in the last few games that not only I score, but so do the full-backs and midfielders. Everyone can score and that’s something good that we have in our team.”
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