Erling Haaland has joked that he only faces half of the pressure that Jack Grealish is under at Manchester City. Haaland made the switch to the Premier League champions from Borussia Dortmund in a deal worth £51 million ($60m), almost half of the £100m ($121m) transfer fee City paid to sign Grealish from Aston Villa last year.
A lot is expected of Norway international Haaland following his exploits at Dortmund, but he has suggested that his price tag is nowhere near as daunting to live up to as that of Grealish.
What did Haaland say to Grealish?
"Erling's looked good in training and once he reaches full fitness will be unstoppable," Grealish said. "I can't wait to play with him and I'm really looking forward to it.
"He actually said to me: 'I'm only half the price of you so I haven't got the pressure'.
"Obviously it's always going to be big expectations, but nowadays you have to deal with it. I suppose if he misses a chance or whatever then people are always going to have something to say. I've had to get used to it myself."
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GettyGrealish added: "He is a great guy, a brilliant guy. The first day that I met him we took a car together and even after that ride I thought: 'What a guy'. He's so down to earth and quite up front with the way he is. You get used to that."
Is Haaland under pressure at Man City?
Haaland is expected to score plenty of goals for Pep Guardiola's side next season after netting an impressive 85 goals in 88 appearances in all competitions for Dortmund.
Haaland admits that he has made a step up to a more difficult environment in joining the English club, saying: "It is a big challenge, it is a new country, a new league, new coach, new everything so it is a big challenge but I know how it is to come to a new club, I have done it a couple of times before."
Meanwhile, ex-City star Sergio Aguero warned recently that it could take some time for the forward to get up and running at the club.
"Haaland will take time to adjust to England and Pep’s demands just like I did," Aguero said. "Logically, he will have a period of adaptation to a league as strong as the Premier League but I think he will go through his own process and the results will be seen soon."