“No phone, no sleep, no water” - Erling Haaland sheds light on bizarre flight routine after hat-trick vs Chelsea in pre-season

Manchester City’s star striker Erling Haaland has shared a rather intriguing experience from the flight home after the club’s pre-season tour, which concluded with a 4-2 victory over Chelsea.

Haaland, one of the few senior players available to Pep Guardiola, has been in impressive form during the tour of the United States. He capped off the pre-season with a hat-trick against Chelsea, with the team now heading back to Manchester to start training for the new season.

On the flight, however, the Norwegian had a unique way of passing the time. He revealed that he didn’t use his phone, and went without sleep, water, or food during the seven-hour journey.

He posted a video on Instagram showing him staring at the map in front of him, with teammate Stefan Ortega relaxing beside him. In the caption of his Instagram story, he wrote:

“No phone, no sleep, no water, no food, only map. #easy."

Haaland has made an impressive start to life in Manchester, having scored 90 goals in just 98 appearances. He played a crucial role in the team’s treble-winning campaign during the 2022-23 season and also helped secure a historic four-peat of Premier League titles last season.

In the four pre-season games in the United States, the forward scored five goals as well. With a full pre-season and an extended break behind him, he will return to Manchester with high expectations to continue his strong performances.

What’s next for Erling Haaland and Manchester City?

Manchester City had a decent pre-season tour in the United States. Pep Guardiola’s side began with two defeats, losing 3-4 to Celtic and 2-3 to AC Milan. However, they appeared to find their rhythm in their final two games against Barcelona (2-2 draw) and Chelsea.

Several young players impressed during the tour, with Guardiola noting James McAtee and Nico O’Reilly as potential additions to the first team this season. The Spanish manager also praised senior players Erling Haaland and Jack Grealish, and highlighted the performances of Oscar Bobb, Rico Lewis, and Kalvin Phillips, who played as a makeshift center-back.

With several senior players yet to return to training, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Guardiola rely on the youngsters in their upcoming Community Shield match against Manchester United (August 10). City will certainly have an eye on revenge after their defeat to United in the FA Cup final a few months ago.

Following the Community Shield, Manchester City will take on Chelsea (August 18) at Stamford Bridge in their opening Premier League game of the season before facing Ipswich Town (August 24) at the Etihad Stadium for their first home match.