According to Marco Rose, Erling Haaland’s hunger proved too much for RB Leipzig in their crushing Champions League last-16 exit to Manchester City.
The Norwegian international ran rampant at the Etihad Stadium, condemning the Bundesliga side to a 7-0 defeat and an 8-1 aggregate exit.
Haaland’s five-goal haul saw him tear through the Leipzig defense with a series of close-range finishes, sending the hosts to the quarter-finals.
Rose, who oversaw the striker’s arrival at Salzburg four years ago, is well-acquainted with the attacker and agreed that his team simply lacked the answers to stop him in the end.
“I know Erling very well,” he said. “I know his qualities. When he is close to the goal, he wants to grab one. He scored five [and] we never managed to get into the game.
“He has had a great [game]. He scored goals with his foot and head, won second balls, [made] deep runs. It looked really simple. He took the ball from the referee. That tells you it was special for him.”
Leipzig had managed to hold City to a draw in the first leg, eking out a 1-1 result that gave them a potential foothold for an upset in this return fixture.
Rose acknowledged his side never got off the ground against their far superior hosts in the end, and took full responsibility for their dismal performance.
“We conceded the goals in a manner that makes this [a] very bitter [result],” he added. “City more than deserved their win.
“We were especially bad when it came to defending inside the penalty area. [That] we did so in a last-16 game in the Champions League [is appalling].
“They changed a few things in their pressing compared to the second half in Leipzig and this is something we had not expected.”