Rooney: Haaland's Anfield Breakthrough Will Be "Scary" for Arsenal

Wayne Rooney has warned Arsenal that Manchester City's dramatic turnaround at Anfield will provide Pep Guardiola's side with the sort of lift that could prove decisive in the run-in.

The Citizens overturned a deficit to edge Liverpool 2-1 on Sunday, courtesy of a late Dominik Szoboszlai free-kick for the hosts followed by Bernardo Silva and Erling Haaland finding the back of the net. That victory pulled City back to within six points of Arsenal, who had extended their lead to nine with a comfortable 3-0 dismantling of Sunderland the previous day.

Speaking on Match of the Day, Rooney acknowledged the psychological impact of City's comeback: "It's a tough place to go Anfield. If they slipped nine points adrift of Arsenal it would have been very difficult for them to win the league. But the confidence and belief that will give them is huge."

The former Manchester United captain emphasised that whilst Arsenal must focus on their own performances, the momentum City have generated will weigh heavily on their minds. "Arsenal can only focus on themselves. I'm sure they will have had an eye on the game, because if City lose, it does become difficult for them," he explained. "Having been there it is very difficult to do that because the Arsenal players would have been watching that game at home and thinking Man City are slipping up here. It would have been deflating and you can waste a lot of energy hoping your rival are going to slip up."

Rooney reserved particular concern for the implications of Haaland's display, which saw the Norwegian striker notch both a goal and an assist in a performance notably different from his usual style. Rather than relying on his trademark power and pace to cut through defences, Haaland operated deeper and took on a more creative role before ultimately scoring a crucial penalty.

"I thought it was a bit of a strange performance from Erling Haaland, a performance I've never really seen from him," Rooney observed. "Normally it's about his power and pace and being ruthless in front of goal, but he was a bit deeper today and was trying to create chances for Man City rather than score them."

The significance of Haaland breaking his Anfield duck for City, however, cannot be overstated according to Rooney. "It's his first goal at Anfield for Man City and you could see the relief in his face. The confidence that will give him now will be scary for Arsenal in the next few weeks."

Rooney suggested that a dip in form may have been gnawing at the striker's mentality, a concern that Sunday's performance has now addressed. "I think it's been a confidence issue with Haaland because no matter what level you're playing at if you're not scoring week in week out it does get to you. Maybe it was getting to him a bit but that goal will raise his confidence levels again."

With 13 matches remaining, City's resurgence and Haaland's apparent restoration of self-belief represent a formidable challenge to Arsenal's title aspirations.