These incredible Erling Haaland stats prove he's on track to become a Champions League great

Chirag Sharatkumar

These incredible Erling Haaland stats prove he's on track to become a Champions League great image

Erling Haaland is a goalscoring machine, but that’s hardly breaking news anymore.

The Norwegian forward remains one of world football’s most prolific strikers, and after a campaign disrupted by minor injuries last season, he’s hit the ground running in emphatic fashion this term.

He has already scored 11 goals in just eight games across all competitions – eight in the Premier League and three in the Champions League.

Haaland has long been a record-setter in Europe’s elite competition.

He announced himself to the world with RB Salzburg in 2019, scoring a first-half hat-trick on his Champions League debut. He remains the first and only player in history of the competition to do so.

📲 Follow The Sporting News on WhatsApp

The Norway international then went on to score in each of his first five Champions League appearances (eight goals in total), joining an exclusive list that includes Alessandro Del Piero, Diego Costa and Sebastien Haller.

And the 25-year-old only added to his remarkable record with a brace in Manchester City’s 2-2 draw with AS Monaco on Wednesday (October 1).

Haaland on track to be a Champions League great

Haaland brought up his 50th Champions League goal in City’s 2-0 win over Napoli on September 18, doing so in just his 49th appearance, smashing the previous record set by Ruud van Nistelrooy (62 games).

He followed that milestone with another dazzling display in Monaco.

His two first-half strikes took his tally to 52 goals in 50 Champions League matches, at a staggering ratio of 1.04 goals per game.

To put that into perspective, the 25-year-old has now scored more goals in his first 50 Champions League appearances than nine entire clubs managed in their first 50 matches in the competition.

This includes the likes of Dinamo Zagreb, Anderlecht, Lille, Club Brugge, Besiktas, Celtic, Galatasaray, CSKA Moscow and Panathinaikos.

Manchester City news and related links

Chirag Sharatkumar

Chirag Sharatkumar is a freelance writer for The Sporting News, with a focus on the Premier League, international football, and global fan culture. He also has extensive experience with the Stats Perform news agency and is a keen long-form sport and culture writer and storyteller. His work can be found on the pages of MUNDIAL Magazine and across various Substack platforms.