Sergio Gallardo

HAALAND

HISTORIC

He's only the third man ever to score five in a Champions League game

After scoring five against RB Leipzig, Erling Haaland has now netted  33 times in 25 Champions League games - a historic goal haul.

The Norwegian has reached 30 goals quicker than any other player in the UCL. Lewandowski took 36 games; Messi, 48; Benzema, 50; Mbappé, 51…

Haaland is also the youngest to reach the milestone. At 22 years and 236 days old, he took the record off Kylian Mbappé (22 years and 352 days).

He’s only six away from breaking into the tournament’s top 20 goalscorers. He’s overtaken Luis Suárez (31) Antoine Griezmann (31), Rivaldo (31)…

Haaland took just 57 minutes to score his five goals against Leipzig. His first two were scored 78 seconds apart - the third-quickest UCL brace ever.

He’s only the third man to score five in a UCL game. Lionel Messi was the first to do so, in Barcelona's last-16 tie with Bayer Leverkusen in 2011/12.

Shakhtar Donetsk’s Luiz Adriano  then emulated the feat in the  2014/15 season, in a group-stage  clash with BATE Borisov.

Haaland could have become the first to score six in a UCL match… but Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola took him off in the 63rd minute.

Speaking post-match, Haaland revealed: “I told him [Guardiola] when  I went off, I would love to score a double hat-trick - but what can I do!”

Haaland has 10 goals in six UCL  games this term. In the EPL, he has 28 in 26. Overall, he's racked up 39 goals and five assists in 36 matches.

“What Haaland is doing in football right now is astonishing,” Rio Ferdinand told BT Sport. “He’s taking the piss now,” Peter Crouch tweeted.

Haaland’s five-goal display led City to a 7-0 win over Leipzig - their joint-biggest in the UCL knockouts, level with their thrashing of Schalke in 2019.

Bayern are the only other side to have won so handsomely in the knockouts: they beat Basel and Shakhtar 7-0 in 2012 and 2015, respectively.

YOU'LL FIND MORE GREAT STORIES AT AS USA