Man City and Inter shared a point each with a score line of 0-0

Erling Haaland did not touch the ball much when Manchester City were held to a draw by visiting team Inter Milan. During the 90 minutes on the field, Haaland only touched the ball 14 times and fired a total of 3 shots, 1 on target, on Thursday, September 19, 2024, when Man City faced Inter Milan at the Etihad Stadium in the 2024/2025 Champions League matchday 1 duel. The match should have been quite exciting between the two champions, but that was not the case.

The Italian side played defensively throughout the match. The Citizens struggled to break down the visitors' defense. The match ended with a stalemate of 0-0, and Haaland was helpless in the face of the opponent's siege. Inter's defense in this match deserves a thumbs-up. They made Man City frustrated and run out of options.

In the post-match press conference, Guardiola admitted that the match against Inter was not easy. Inter defended neatly and for Pep there is nothing wrong with such tactics. The 53-year-old City's manager also admitted that his strikers were struggling. Haaland had difficulty receiving the ball because he was surrounded by Inter players, any striker would have struggled.

"They were better than us in transition. We allowed Lautaro a chance, another chance for Mkhitaryan," Guardiola said. "They surrounded Haaland with six players, three behind him, three in front of him. That makes it difficult for any player, anywhere."

A draw in the first leg of the Champions League game is certainly not good enough for Man City, Guardiola knows that. But he also knows that the season is still long. "We wanted to win of course, but we have no regrets because they defended very well. It's not even October yet, so we haven't reached our top level yet," he concluded.