Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has showered praise on Erling Haaland after he scored a brace in the team’s 4-1 win against Southampton on Saturday at St. Mary’s Stadium. The Spaniard revealed that the Norwegian is always in a good space and that’s why he gets the best out of himself.

Haaland has been in red-hot form in the ongoing Premier League, scoring 30 goals in 27 matches of the season. Furthermore, he has netted 10 goals in six matches of the Champions League.

Meanwhile, Lionel Messi played under the tutelage of Pep Guardiola for Barcelona. Guardiola revealed Messi would have been disappointed if he had scored two goals instead of a hat-trick but Haaland is not like him.

Speaking to reporters after the win over Southampton, Guardiola said, “Haaland is always happy, always smiling. Lionel Messi scored two but not three and was a bit sad because he didn’t score the third! Erling is all the time in an incredible mood. Even in the bad moments at the beginning of this season when people said he couldn’t adapt, he arrived at training with a big smile and said hi to everyone. He has had an incredible impact, not just on the pitch.

“Every day in training sessions, in the locker room. I have the feeling that he is so happy with us. He never complains about [being taken off]. He respects me a lot. After Burnley, he was injured and couldn’t play against Liverpool, so we know him and have to take care of him. He can score important goals and win games. He is going to play 90 minutes but with this amount of games every three days, you have another weapon in Julian [Alvarez], who is always ready. That’s why it is a big boost for us.”

Pep Guardiola also suggested that Haaland is on the same level as legends like Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, who both have achieved big records in their respective careers and are regarded as the best in the world.

Manchester City will face Bayern Munich in the first leg of the Champions League quarterfinal on Tuesday night.