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Bray: Erling Haaland doubles down on Man City squad criticism despite Pep Guardiola alternative …

Erling Haaland previously said that Manchester City players have lacked hunger this season and has repeated his criticism of their campaign ahead of the FA Cup final.

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Erling Haaland has offered a typically honest assessment of Manchester City's frustrating season.

Erling Haaland has offered a typically honest assessment of Manchester City's frustrating season.

Erling Haaland admits this season has been 'boring' after two glorious years to start his Manchester City career.

Haaland ripped up the record book in his first season en route to a sensational treble, before continuing that form with a second Golden Boot to help City to an unprecedented fourth Premier League title in a row.

But circumstances have worked against City this season and the fifth title was never really on the cards. City go into the final two games of the season still needing to secure a Champions League spot, even with the added insurance of an extra qualification place for the Premier League.

An FA Cup final on Saturday is a chance to take some silverware from the season, with Haaland insisting that the cup won't change how City feel about their disappointing campaign. It follows recent comments from the striker accepting his own form has not been good enough while admitting that the 'hunger' in the squad had dropped from previous years.

Speaking to BBC Sport, he said: "This season has been tough. It is not nice to lose so many games, it is boring and not fun. That's why we need to finish well and get a trophy.

"When you have won four league titles in a row, if you don't win five it's not going to be a successful season. Those are the standards we have set. We haven't done good enough in the league but still hoping for Champions League qualification.

"We haven't been stable enough this season and we haven't won enough games, it is as simple as that. We have to perform better in the big games. We haven't won enough consecutive games.

"Of course, we have had injuries throughout the season. But we should not search for excuses. Every single one of us hasn't been good enough and we haven't been at our best, so when you are not at your best you aren't going to win games in this country because it's so hard."

Manager Pep Guardiola suggested he didn't quite agree with Haaland's previous 'hunger' comments, saying: "If it's the feeling from Erling, the players should talk to each other and ask themselves why

"We can do better, we are happy with the results we have. The situation we have has been sustained for many months and this [current run] is just three or four weeks."

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