Roy Keane returns to Erling Haaland comparison to ‘League 2’ after Man City star marks return from injury with goal… as he jokes striker got upgrade

Roy Keane has reconsidered his comments about Erling Haaland after calling the striker a ‘League Two player’.

Keane made headlines last month for his scathing criticism of the striker, who he criticized for his overall play at a time when he was struggling to find fitness in his bid to help Manchester City to reach the triple.

That surge has now ended due to the club’s Champions League exit to Real Madrid, a match in which Haaland suffered an injury that saw him miss his side’s FA semi-final win Cup and the 4-0 victory against Brighton.

He did, however, return to action as a substitute against Nottingham Forest on Sunday, coming off the bench to score City’s second goal in their 2-0 win and ensuring they remained in control of the title race.

Former Manchester United player Keane spoke about Haaland again after the match on Sky Sports and was slightly more complimentary of the striker than he was a few weeks ago.

Roy Keane has revisited his comments which saw him label Erling Haaland (left) a ‘League Two player’.

Haaland marked his return from injury with a goal as Manchester City beat Nottingham Forest

Keane jokingly gave Haaland an upgrade, insisting he is now a ‘championship player’.

“He looked very much like a championship player, he’s improved a lot,” Keane said. “In terms of goalscoring he is absolutely incredible, there is no doubt about his quality in terms of finishing.

“When he comes on he’ll want to have an impact on the game and when it’s tense like that, he’s got people like (Kevin) De Bruyne, he’ll find you and then it’s just that bit of sharpness which he demonstrated.”

Despite failing to reach the season highs of 52 goals he recorded last campaign, Haaland still had a successful year, scoring 32 goals in 40 games in all competitions.

He faces competition for the Golden Boot this time around, having scored 21 times in the league, one more than Chelsea’s Cole Palmer and two more than Alexander Isak and Ollie Watkins.

The 23-year-old, however, is ready to propel his side to their fourth consecutive league title – a Premier League record – and may have returned to form following his injury layoff.

Before his absence, Keane had criticized Haaland’s all-round game, insisting his game should be about more than scoring goals and that he had a number of improvements to make.

Haaland had a difficult run of form and missed two games before his return.

However, he is now fit again and looking to win the Golden Boot and help City win the Premier League.

“The level of his overall game is so poor, and not just today I think his general layoffs, his headers or anything in terms of in front of goal are the best in the world, but for his game “Generally for such a player, it’s so poor,” Keane said of Haaland after City’s 0-0 draw against Arsenal.

“Not just today I think he needs to improve, he’s almost like a Ligue 2 player.

“That’s how I see it, his overall game needs to improve and he will over the next few years. There have been some brilliant and fantastic strikers. But he needs to improve his overall game.