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Manchester City superstar Erling Haaland swapped shirts with FC Barcelona striker Robert Lewandowski after their clubs met in a friendly on Monday (July 30). It was the Blaugrana who emerged victorious, winning 4-1 on penalties after playing out a 2-2 draw in regular time.
The Norwegian, who started the match, came close to opening the scoring in the first quarter and was denied a goal when replays seemed to suggest the ball went in. Pau Víctor gave the Catalans the lead in the 24th minute and had his strike cancelled out by Nico O'Reilly's goal six minutes before the break.
With the sides looking like heading into the interval level, Pablo Torre scored to give Barcelona the advantage in first-half stoppage time (45+2'). Jack Grealish found the net from a tight angle in the 60th minute to equalise for the Premier League outfit and take the match into penalties.
Lewandowski was the first from the spot and converted his penalty as the Spanish side did not miss in the shootout. After the match, Haaland and the Poland international were seen swapping shirts.
While the 24-year-old Norwegian is considered one of the best young players in the world, Lewandowski is headed towards the back end of his career. Haaland moved to Manchester City in the summer of 2022 for a reported €60 million and is one of the best strikers in the world.
Meanwhile, the Barcelona attacker is 35 years old and has two years left on his current deal. He's been linked with a move to Saudi Arabia this summer (via GOAL).
Pep Guardiola raises Erling Haaland injury concerns after Barcelona friendly
Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has raised concerns over Erling Haaland's fitness following the Cityzens' defeat to Barcelona in a pre-season friendly on Monday.
After the Norway international began the match, he was substituted at half-time because of an injury issue. Revealing this after the game's conclusion, Guardiola said (via Manchester Evening News):
"He got some niggles. He didn't feel good. He is disturbing something, doesn't feel comfortable, we don't want to take risks."
"Sooner or later he has to take a step. He has niggles, muscular, don't want to take a risk and lose him for three weeks."
Manchester City play their next friendly against Chelsea on Saturday (August 3). They get their Premier League campaign underway with a match against the Blues as well on August 18.
