Erling Haaland’s heroic hat-trick shows that the Man City star is ready to break all scoring records

MANCHESTER, England — If Erling Haaland really the heir Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi then he wasted no time checking the numbers to prove it.

The possibility is that we may never see the same goalscoring achievements as Ronaldo and Messi have achieved during their time at the club. Spainbut Haaland started operating in City of Manchester – at least – raised the possibility that we can do it.

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The Norwegian’s tally so far is five games and nine goals after his second hat-trick in five days helped City to a 6-0 win over Nottingham Forest at the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday. No player has scored more goals in his first five Premier League appearances and the path Haaland is on, it’s unlikely to be the last record he’s broken this season.

To put his exploits into context, yes Sergio Aguero over three years and nearly 100 games to score two hat-tricks for Man City. Haaland did it in less than a month, playing only the full 90 minutes in that span.

“What he did in Norway, Shirt and Germany He tries to do here,” Pep Guardiola said afterwards. The first time he touched the ball, he scored a goal. We know that. He always scores. He can be stopped when we don’t play well, but we try to play decently because of the fact that we create opportunities for our talented players to score.

“He’s strong in all departments, but especially around the box, his finishing touches and work ethic are just too great.”

The concern for the rest of the league is that Guardiola is adamant. Haaland is still settling in, but he’s been remarkably productive. In 68 minutes against Forest, he touched the ball 16 times but got 4 shots, 3 times on target and 3 times on target. He has contributed 105 touchdowns so far this season and scores an average of 11.6 goals. It was a terrifying comeback too early in his career at City.

“So far so good,” Haaland said, with a gentle tone. “I’m not complaining. There will be a lot of games, so it’s important to go ahead and enjoy as much as possible. It’s amazing, nothing more to say.”

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Except Ilkay Gundogan, Guardiola says that Haaland is still trying to get on the same wavelength as his teammates, although his physical stats alone are enough to make the defense nervous. Just ask Joe Worrall. Worrall has spent most of his career in the Championship, which is considered a physical tournament, but even he looked shocked as he sprawled on the floor while Haaland turned away to celebrate.

The second goal was a touchdown – just his third touch of the evening – and the third was a thunderous header into the line as he went very far ahead of the two rears. yellow vest guard. A perfect hat-trick – left foot, right foot and header – encapsulated in 38 minutes. His hat-trick against Crystal Palace on Saturday it only takes 19 minutes.

Forest manager Steve Cooper summed it up by simply saying that Haaland had “a lot of it.”

Haaland has scored more goals in August than Harry Kane and the England international is in his 11th season in the Premier League. Mohamed SalahThe competition record of 32 goals in 38 games in the 2017-18 season is also at stake. As for the record, Salah started the season with three goals in his first five games; Haaland has a head-to-head record of six goals although Guardiola believes his number nine will only measure success this season in the championship.

“I think what he wants is to win titles,” he said. “Knowing him a little, I don’t know if he would be happy to break the record if we don’t win the title. If we play well, he will have more chances.

“I know Erling is happy scoring, but what he wants is to win. If he breaks the record but we don’t win, he won’t be happy.”

The challenge for Haaland is consistency, which Ronaldo and Messi master Real Madrid and Barcelona corresponding. During his nine years at the Bernabeu, Ronaldo scored 450 goals in 438 games. Meanwhile, Messi spent 13 consecutive seasons at Barcelona from 2008 to 2021, scoring at least 30 times. From 2009 to 2019, he scored at least 40 goals per season.

The numbers are enticing and while Haaland, still only 22, is a long way from achieving those feats, it’s the company he’s threatening to keep. As Messi and Ronaldo reach the end of their reigns as Europe’s top scorers, if Haaland continues to do so, he’s ready to take over.

Man City Ratings (by Liam Wheeler)

Player Rating (1-10; 10 = best, players referred after 70 minutes are not ranked)

GK Ederson6 – Found himself with an early touch, despite being 20 yards from his target, after a sloppy pass forced City back. He had to stand on tiptoe when Rodri put a bit too much on another ball towards the Man City goalkeeper. Other than that, he had very little to do.

DF Kyle Walker7 – Offered a lot of breadth in the early stages, but he left Renan Lodi Uncheck the column after the away team’s first threat. Also much more relaxed, and he showed his experience to start Emmanuel Dennis’s run.

DF John Stones8 — Set a third record for Haaland with a perfect header towards goal. Before that, he thought he was attacking from Haaland’s cartoon, but England The defender went offside halfway.

DF Ruben Dias7 – A comfortable night for the defender. He barely has to do anything and would be happy to score another clean sheet against his name.

DF Joao Cancelo, 8 years old – Corner coercion leads to breakout after a neat exchange with Phil Foden, and he also featured in Man City’s third place with a stunning serve from outside the boot. It was a thunderous strike with a 4-0 win over Henderson.

MF Bernardo Silva9 – A couple of early runs from the midfielder who edged past Lodi beautifully before losing his footing in the box. A class performance from the 28-year-old, who featured heavily in City’s second game and beat Cancelo 4-0.

MF Rodri, 7 – Typically calm and composed in the middle, showing his experience to stop the run Brennan Johnson, who is looking to light a afterburner. Substituted after the break as Guardiola looked to save his leg for another day.

MF Ilkay Gundogan7 – A header and a miss from Germany international, whose sassy attacks drifted wide, and he started the second half in a similar fashion. Causing problems with some good serves from synergies that left the jungler scrambling.

FW Julian Alvarez, 9 years old – An industrious display from the fledgling striker, who headed late at half-time before opening his Premier eagle account after the break, darting smartly into the bottom corner before scoring a stunning winner. nice at the last minute.

FW Erling Haalandten – Insert endless superlatives here. Nine goals in five games for the striker, who started with his first touch of the ball and completed a remarkable first-half hat-trick with an almighty leap to convert from a reverse header of the Stones through the goal.

FW Phil Foden, 9 years old – Haaland may be taking over the headlines, but the Norwegian big man must have enjoyed playing with this man, who already has all three of his goals in hand, albeit only through a tackle in the second. . Another super screen.

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DF Sergio Gomez, 7 years old – Substitute for Cancelo at 69 minutes. Negatives Neco Williams with good form as the visitors hunt for consolation goals, and generally look bright up front.

DF Rico LewisNR – Substituted for Stones after 74 minutes. Second Premier League appearance for the 17-year-old, who deserved his arrival with few challenges.

MF Cole Palmer6 – Substitute for Rodri 55 minutes into the match. The youngster also kept his form, as City completely refused to slow down with the game over and dusty.

MF Kevin De Bruyne6 – Sub for the match against Haaland at 69 minutes. Grab a Mahrez chest with a label on the right wing and then Gomez’s boot with another on the left. Smartly Rejected Dean Henderson late.

FW Riyad Mahrez6 – Substitute for Foden 55 minutes into the match. The score should have been 6-0, but he could only shoot long after creating a golden opportunity with a smart dart in the back.

Coach Pep Guardiola, 8 years old – Two changes from the Man City boss with Kevin De Bruyne and Riyad Mahrez coming on from the bench, while the Spaniard gave more precious minutes to a few of the club’s emerging young talents. Man City. Thank goodness he didn’t give Haaland a break.