Erling Haaland reached 21 goals for the season for club and country as his hat-trick helped Norway to a 5-0 win over Israel in their World Cup qualifier after pro-Palestine protests in Oslo.
Haaland’s latest hat-trick means he has surpassed the 20-goal mark for the season in just 12 games. His second goal of the match – a header from Antonio Nusa’s cross – made it 50 goals for Norway in just 46 matches.
Haaland could have had more had he converted a first-half penalty, but he saw see two attempts from 12 yards saved after referee Szymon Marciniak ordered the first kick to be retaken because Israel goalkeeper Daniel Peretz had moved off his line too soon, before saving his second attempt.
Norway’s other two goals came from Israel own goals – conceded by Anan Khalaili and Idan Nachmias.
Before the game, pro-Palestinian protesters lit flares and waved flags as they marched to the stadium.
Public broadcaster NRK said around 1,000 protesters marched from Oslo’s city centre to Ullevaal Stadion, where they were reportedly planning to stay until the start of the game at 6pm local time.
A banner about the war in Gaza was carried by the protesters in what appeared to be a peaceful march. A few dozen fans stayed to continue protesting outside the stadium once the match had started. Only 3,000 spectators were being allowed into the game amid tight security checks.
A Palestine flag was unfurled inside the stadium early in the game along with a banner which read “Let Children Live.” Some fans jeered the Israel national anthem and others held up red cards in the crowd.
On Friday, FIFA President Gianni Infantino appealed for calm ahead of Israel’s qualifying matches after Israel and Hamas agreed to a peace deal.
After Haaland’s winner for Man City vs Brentford in the Premier League, Jamie Carragher described the striker as English football’s “greatest goalscorer” after the game. The player himself said he is in the form of his life. “I’ve never felt better than I do now,” he told Sky Sports.
So, is Haaland getting even better? His numbers make a compelling case.
He has already made history in the Champions League. With his goal his in 49th appearance in the competition against Napoli, Haaland became the quickest player to reach 50 Champions League goals, smashing the record held by Ruud van Nistelrooy, who needed 62 games, with Lionel Messi next on 66.
For further context, Cristiano Ronaldo, the Champions League’s leading scorer with 140 goals, took 91 games to reach a half-century.
Haaland has of course been similarly prolific in the Premier League. His goal against Brentford took him to 94 in 104 appearances, giving him an unprecedented strike rate which puts him close to becoming the quickest player in the competition’s history to join the 100-club ahead of Alan Shearer, who needed 125 games.
Harry Kane, Sergio Aguero, Thierry Henry and Mohamed Salah are the next-fastest players behind Shearer to reach the milestone, all of them trailing in Haaland’s wake.
Haaland’s astonishing scoring rate makes him an outlier and, with nine years still to run on the extraordinary contract he signed in January, and having only turned 25 in July, he is on course to break just about every Premier League scoring record.
If he continues scoring at the same rate, and factoring his average playing time, Haaland is projected to beat Shearer’s record of 260 Premier League goals in September 2030.
Should he stay at the Etihad Stadium for the duration of his contract, until 2034, the same projection suggests he will reach a staggering total of 389 Premier League goals. (SkySports)
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