Erling Haaland: The records Manchester City star has already broken - and those he is primed to smash
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Updated 09/10/2022 at 11:29 GMT
Erling Haaland has lit up the Premier League, with the 22-year-old seemingly scoring goals for fun. His mere presence on the pitch puts Man City at a major advantage, as defenders have not figured out a way to limit his goal-scoring prowess. He's fit with ease into Pep Guardiola's title-winning side, and with several records already broken, he seems capable and eager to break many more.
‘This is the secret’ - Haaland’s pre-match meal is key to his success, jokes Guardiola
Pep Guardiola was in a joking mood after Manchester City’s 4-0 win over Southampton, claiming that he was upset with Erling Haaland because he didn't score a hat-trick.
The reality is Haaland, who completed a £51 million transfer from Borussia Dortmund to City this summer, is not only on his way to becoming one of the best and most impactful signings of the season, but also of all time.
We’ve certainly come a long way from a tearful Guardiola saying that Man City would not be able to replace Sergio Aguero.
Haaland may still have a way to go before reaching Aguero’s legacy in Manchester, but with his unbelievable start to his Premier League career, the 22-year-old has already broken records within three months, and he’s on his way to many more.
Records Haaland has broken
With his sole goal against Southampton at the weekend, Haaland became the fastest player to score 15 Premier League goals, doing it in just nine matches.
"He scored a brilliant goal. It's an incredible weapon for us, a big threat. I am so satisfied,” said Guardiola after the match.
Prior to Haaland’s goal, the fastest player to net 15 times in the league was Andy Cole, who did it in 15 games.
He has also become the first player to score in his first four away games in the Premier League, scoring at the London Stadium against West Ham, St. James’ Park against Newcastle, Villa Park against Aston Villa, and Molineux against Wolves.
The Norwegian also has a handful of Champions League records to his name. After scoring a brace against Copenhagen, his tally rose to 28 Champions League goals in 22 matches. Harry Kane previously held the not-overly-prestigious 22-game record, scoring 10 fewer - 18 in 22 games.
It then comes as no surprise that Haaland also has the record for the fewest Champions League games needed to score 10, 15 and 20 goals.
He is also the only player to score more than one goal on his CL debut for three different clubs, with a double against Sevilla for Man City, a double for Dortmund against Paris Saint-Germain, and a hat-trick for Salzburg against Genk.
Haaland also broke a record that was just broken, becoming the youngest player in the Champions League to score 25 goals (22 years, 47 days). It was previously held by Kylian Mbappe (22 years, 80 days), who took it off Lionel Messi (22 years, 286 days).
Records Haaland can set his sights on
A short-term record that Haaland can set his sights on is beating the tally of Man City’s top league goal scorer last season. He’s already equalled it, as Kevin De Bruyne netted 15 times on Man City’s way to the league title, their fourth in five seasons.
Haaland is likely looking at breaking the record for most goals in a Premier League season. Andy Cole and Alan Shearer both scored 34 goals (Cole in 1993/94 and Shearer in 1994/95) in a 42-game season.
Mohamed Salah scored 32 in the league’s current format of 38 games, doing so in his debut season for Liverpool in 2017/18.
It would be unlikely, but if Haaland continues to score at his current rate, he would finish with a ridiculous haul of over 60 league goals.
This would break the record for most goals in a league season in the top-five European leagues, currently held by Messi, who netted 50 goals in La Liga’s 2011/12 season.
The record for the most goals in a Champions League campaign is Cristiano Ronaldo’s, who scored 17 goals in 11 games in 2013/14.
Haaland would likely need to lead City to at least the semi-finals and score multiple goals in every round to get close to that record.
But the fact that we’re mentioning Haaland amongst some of the greats of the game is a testament to how remarkable he’s played the past few years.
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