Erling Haaland breaks the Premier League record after only five games with Manchester City.
Haaland scored three goals for the second game in a row. After his hat-trick against Crystal Palace, Haaland punished Nottingham Forest with some ruthless finishing. this weekend
Erling Haaland scored a hat-trick for Manchester City in the first half on Wednesday, setting a new record in the process.
The Norwegian striker has gotten off to a great start at the Etihad. In his first four Premier League games, he has scored six goals, including a hat trick against Crystal Palace last weekend that helped City come from behind to win all three points.
Haaland didn't want to stop at just one hat-trick this week, so he scored another three goals against Nottingham Forest on Wednesday night. He almost did it all by himself, as he had already done against Crystal Palace. The 22-year-old scored his first goal against Steve Cooper's newly-promoted team in just 12 minutes.
The first goal was scored by a true poacher. Haaland fought off an opponent and poked the ball past Dean Henderson after a deflected cross from Phil Foden fell into his path. Haaland only needed 11 more minutes to score again. This time, he just had to tap the ball into the net after Neco Williams tackled Foden and moved the ball into his path after Henderson lost control of the ball.
Haaland almost made sure he would get the match ball after 38 minutes when he scored another easy goal from close range. Foden was involved again. He headed Cancelo's cross back across the goal, where Stones then headed it to Haaland, who scored.
Haaland scored his ninth goal in his first five Premier League games, which was a record. According to Opta Joe, no other player has gotten that many in such a short amount of time. The previous record was held by Mick Quinn and former City star Sergio Aguero, who both had eight.
At this rate, Haaland could win the Golden Boot before Christmas. His closest competitor right now is Aleksandar Mitrovic of Fulham, who has scored five goals.
Pep Guardiola said that his player's hat-trick against Palace at the weekend was "nothing special" after the game. Guardiola said, "I'd say thanks for my great ideas, but Erling has been doing this since he was born."
"At Salzburg, BVB (Borussia Dortmund) always scored goals, and he has done this his whole life. He has a great sense of where he wants to go with these teams that play deep defense. All three goals are good, but the last one is especially important."
Guardiola said, "He came to do that [score important goals]. That's what he's done his whole life. This guy's numbers are beyond."
He didn't try to get away from the game and is always there. As a striker, he is amazing. He never touched the ball, but he always knew where it was and what was going on "It was a lot like how he used his body for West Ham. He didn't shoot; instead, he made it so soft that the keeper couldn't stop it. When you look at the numbers, you can see how many games he has played and how many goals he has scored. It is amazing."