'Quite useless'- Erling Haaland savaged by ex-Real Madrid star after no-show for Man City in Champions League tie

The Norwegian striker was hardly involved during City's thrilling 3-3 draw against Real Madrid in the first leg of their last eight tie on Tuesday evening at the Santiago Bernabeu. Haaland was reigned in by Antonio Rudiger for most of the match, and when he tried to drift away from the German centre-back, Aurelien Tchouameni stepped in to take care of him.

Haaland's numbers further highlight how poor he had been on the night. According to TNT Sports, the striker had just 20 touches, lost possession seven times, managed just a single shot on target and failed to complete a single dribble.

Former Real Madrid midfielder Rafael van der Vaart was unimpressed with Haaland, and vented his frustration on Ziggo Sport. "Erling Haaland was very bad," said the Dutchman. "If he doesn't score, he's quite useless. I find him a very average player on the ball."

Real Madrid goalkeeper Andriy Lunin (26) had more touches than Haaland (13) in the first half of the match. Moreover, Haaland has played more Champions League games without scoring (3) against Real Madrid than any other team in his entire career in the competition to date.

Haaland will get another opportunity to silence his critics in a week's time when Real Madrid travel to the Etihad Stadium next Wednesday for the decisive second leg of the quarter-final. However, before that, he is set to be involved in a Premier League encounter against Luton Town on Saturday.