It took just one Premier League game for Erling Haaland to get off the mark in 2024/25 and add to his impressive goals tally.
The Norwegian showed tremendous skill, strength and balance to hold off two Chelsea defenders before sticking the ball in the net at Stamford Bridge on Sunday, helping Manchester City kick off their title defence with three points.
It’s the kind of goal that very few strikers could pull off, but Haaland has made a habit of roasting defenders in the box on his way to finding the target.
There seems to be no slowing him down and little prospect of anyone matching his insane return of goals. Here’s how his closest competitors fare in comparison since he moved from Borussia Dortmund in 2022.
The most goals scored since Erling Haaland joined Man City:
5. Marcus Rashford (Manchester United) – 38
The career of Marcus Rashford has taken twists and turns, had many ups and downs, but when the Manchester United forward is fit and in form he is terrific in front of goal.
The 26-year-old was at the height of his powers in the latter half of 2022/23 when he was scoring goals at a click similar to Haaland, netting 30 in total.
Last season saw a remarkable drop-off in performance and output from Rashford, who scored just eight goals in 43 appearances. Can he bounce back this year?
4. Phil Foden (Manchester City) – 42
It feels like Phil Foden has been around forever, but you have to remind yourself sometimes that he’s still only 24-years-old. He’s already a six-time Premier League champion, Champions League winner, and PFA Player of the Year.
The England star has come of age in the past two seasons, playing an integral role while scoring 42 in 100 appearances. That’s a stellar return for a midfielder, and it will probably be the norm for him over the next few years.
Honoured to be voted as the @PFA Players’ POTY last night 🏆
Thank you to everyone who has supported me to get to where I am now it really does mean a lot 🩵 pic.twitter.com/MG8c5rtiQZ
— Phil Foden (@PhilFoden) August 21, 2024
3. Ollie Watkins (Aston Villa) – 43
Unai Emery has truly unlocked Ollie Watkins since replacing Steven Gerrard as Aston Villa manager, turning the Englishman from an energetic but inconsistent striker into an end product machine.
The 28-year-old ended 2022/23 with 15 goals and six assists, the best top-flight tally of his career. But last season saw him become one of the best attackers in the Premier League, registering 19 goals and 13 assists, along with five goals in the Europa Conference League.
2. Mohamed Salah (Liverpool) – 56
It says a lot about Haaland that one of the most lethal attackers in Premier League history still lags behind the man mountain when it comes to goals scored in English football.
Mo Salah remains one of the best wide forwards in the game in his thirties, having found the net 56 times in all competitions over the past two seasons. No wonder Liverpool were willing to reject a £150m offer from the Saudi Pro League last summer.
No player in history has scored more goals on the opening day of the EPL season than Mohamed Salah (9) 🇪🇬🔴👑 pic.twitter.com/tkkIpVvhfR
— OneFootball (@OneFootball) August 17, 2024
1. Erling Haaland (Manchester City) – 91
Erling Haaland is redefining what we thought was possible in the Premier League. You have to go back to the 1920’s when Dixie Dean put up 60 goals in a single campaign to find someone more ruthless than him in English football.
‘The Terminator’ is an appropriate nickname, and one the man himself approves of, for obvious reasons. He’s unstoppable in front of goal, no matter the competition.
62 goals in 67 Bundesliga appearances. 41 in 39 in the Champions League. And now 64 in 67 in the Premier League.
91 goals in 100 appearances for City! 🤯@ErlingHaaland scores our first @premierleague goal of the season ✨ pic.twitter.com/QF48m0hLJp
— Manchester City (@ManCity) August 18, 2024
Those are otherworldly numbers that Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo would be proud of, but neither player was so devastating from such a young age. He’s still only 24-years-old, yet he’s just nine goals away from a century of goals in all competitions a little over two years since joining Man City, having just made his 100th appearance.
To paraphrase Thanos, Haaland is inevitable.
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