'You're going places' - Ex-Man City boss reveals moment he knew Haaland was special

Haaland has taken the English top flight by storm but, just two months ago, Pearce was doubting if the Norwegian would be able to fit into Pep Guardiola's style of play.

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Haaland joined champions Manchester City in the summer but, whilst highly-rated from his electric spell with Borussia Dortmund, he didn't get off the mark immediately.

Before the new Premier League season began, Guardiola's side faced rivals Liverpool in the Community Shield, a game the Reds comfortably won 3-1 with City's new star signing failing to score.

Fans and pundits came out to question Haaland, citing City's inability to feed him the ball effectively during the game and doubting the Etihad Stadium outfit's ability to work him into their style.

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Pearce was one of those questioning the introduction of Haaland, saying it could take 'a couple of years' for him to gel with the team - and the England legend is more than happy to have been proven wrong.

Fast forward seven games into the campaign and Haaland is being tipped to break Premier League records having netted 11 goals, including back-to-back hat-tricks, with a derby showdown against Manchester United next up on Sunday.

And Pearce has praised Haaland and his teammates for instantly fixing the trouble they faced factoring him in during their Wembley disappointment.

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"I covered the Community Shield at the start of the season and I looked at [Erling] Haaland and he made one or two runs in the channels and they didn't play him the ball," Pearce said on Friday's talkSPORT Breakfast.

"I thought, 'Unless they get in sync with him, you're not going to get the best out of him'.

"All of a sudden, a week later, they're clever players, they started playing the ball down the channels, in behind, and all of a sudden you've got a fella who can take it down the line or receive to feet and build up.

"My goodness me!"

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Following the Community Shield, Haaland has entered into what can only be described as an outrageous run of form.

He got off the mark on his league debut, scoring twice against West Ham at the London Stadium, and has gone on to net a total of 14 goals in ten appearances in all competitions.

But Pearce revealed that it was against his former club, Newcastle, where he really saw what Haaland was capable of - with an interaction with experienced City right-back, Kyle Walker, being the key moment.

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The England international had the ball and Haaland was queuing up for it to be passed to him. However, Walker went for goal instead, much to the new striker's frustration.

Pearce continued: "Walker's had a shot and Haaland's reaction to Walker… I'm thinking this is a 22-year-old young man who's just joined Manchester City.

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"He's just absolutely berated Kyle Walker, who's a seasoned professional who's been [in the Premier League] for a decade.

"It wasn't in a bad way [his reaction]. It was, 'I'm in a better position than you, so give me the ball, that's what I'm here for'.

"And I thought, 'You're going places son!'"