Haaland is Ridiculous and Rare, Even for the Best of the Best
Erling Haaland is on a mission to break every record in the book, and Sunday’s 2-0 win at Stamford Bridge was just the latest chapter in his incredible story. The Norway striker celebrated his 100th Manchester City appearance with his 91st goal, earning his team an opening-game victory against Chelsea.
Haaland’s manager Pep Guardiola paid him the ultimate compliment, comparing his numbers to those of the greatest strikers of all time, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. "These are the numbers of Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo," Guardiola said. "They controlled the last decade and 15 years absolutely everything. In terms of numbers, it is that level."
And it’s hard to argue with those sentiments. Haaland’s numbers since joining Manchester City from Borussia Dortmund in the summer of 2022 are simply astonishing. He has scored 64 goals in 67 Premier League appearances, a record that will be hard to beat. His 36 league goals in his first season with City took him past the longstanding joint records of Alan Shearer and Andrew Cole, and he could win his third consecutive Premier League Golden Boot.
Former Liverpool striker Daniel Sturridge described Haaland’s goalscoring record as "ridiculous", saying, "He is obsessed with scoring goals. You can see he has it in him, he wants to be more than just a goalscorer." Former Manchester City defender Micah Richards echoed those sentiments, saying, "He is having to adapt his game because Manchester City always have the ball. He has to adapt his game in the box and that is what he deserves credit for. He was constantly making those runs to create space."
But despite his incredible record, Haaland remains humble and hungry for more. He told Sky Sports, "I want to help the team and to make the team work and get the other players in better positions. To get an extra metre for Bernardo Silva, number 10, if I can stretch the centre-backs to get an extra metre I will do it. It’s hard but yeah."
And Haaland had the last laugh against Chelsea’s Marc Cucurella, who made headlines over the summer by singing "Haaland you’d better tremble as Cucurella is coming" while celebrating Spain’s Euro 2024 triumph. Haaland responded with a goal in the 18th minute, shrugging off Cucurella’s attentions before dinking the ball over goalkeeper Robert Sanchez. And to add insult to injury, Cucurella limped off through injury in the second half.
So, what can we expect from Haaland in the future? Will he continue to break records and dominate the Premier League? Only time will tell, but one thing is certain: Erling Haaland is a striker like no other, and his love of scoring goals is as fierce as ever.
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