‘It’s him again. A sight no keeper wants to see. Back-to-back hat-tricks for Erling Haaland”.
These were the words of the commentator after the Norwegian machine bagged his second hat-trick in as many games in a just concluded Premier League match against West Ham United.
It is now seven goals in just three games this season for the Manchester City number 9. The English Premier League is usually hyped as the most competitive and most difficult league in the world.
So the question on every EPL fan’s lips are if Haaland has turned the Premier League into a farmer’s league.
The term “Farmer’s League” is a derogatory term used by football fans to describe a league perceived as having a low level of competition, where one or two dominant teams win the title with ease, while the rest of the teams are significantly weaker.
This term is often used to criticize leagues like the French Ligue 1, where Paris Saint-Germain’s dominance has led to a perceived lack of competitive balance
Usually, strikers find it difficult to score goals regularly in the Premier League, but that mentality has seen a drastic overhaul in recent years due to the arrival of Norwegian forward Erling Braut Haaland.
He is undoubtedly one of the best strikers in the world at the moment.
The former Borussia Dortmund striker has taken the league by storm since his arrival in the summer of 2022 as he has scored goals for fun ravaging defenders and goalkeepers.
Premier League tickets have indeed seen a rise in demand due to Haaland’s goalscoring feats and the forward doesn’t seem like he would stop anytime soon.
Haaland, who is the son of former Leeds United and Manchester City player Alf-Inge Haaland, first rose to prominence as an 18-year-old when he scored 9 goals in a FIFA U-20 World Cup match as Norway pummeled Honduras 12-0 in May 2019.
He initially started his career at Fk Bryne before making the switch to Norwegian giants Molde in 2017.
Then a year later, he moved to Austrian Bundesliga champions Red Bull Salzburg. At Salzburg, he played in the UEFA Champions League, where he scored a first-half hat-trick on his debut in a 6-2 victory over Genk, thereby becoming the first and only player to score a first-half hat-trick on his Champions League debut.
He went on to score an impressive 29 goals in 22 games during his time in Austria, cementing his place as one of the most lethal number 9s in football.
As the most sought-after young forward in football, Haaland chose to continue his development by moving to German giants Borussia Dortmund in a €20 million deal.
There, he scored a hat-trick on his debut in Germany in a 5-3 win over Augsburg. His time in Germany ended with 62 goals in 67 Bundesliga appearances and 86 goals in 89 games overall for the German outfit.
Haaland’s incredible numbers
Following his impressive displays for Dortmund, on May 10, 2022, Manchester City swooped in and announced that they had activated his release clause of £51.2 million and Haaland would be joining on a five-year deal.
Despite his impressive statistics at his previous clubs, there were fears that Haaland would struggle to adapt to the demand and competitiveness of English football.
It was believed that he would struggle to make an impact in Pep Guardiola’s possession-based team which had frequently performed without a number 9.
His first game in English football did little to impress fans as he had a very poor outing in the Community Shield loss to Liverpool.
He was outmatched by Liverpool defenders Joel Matip and Virgil Van Dijk and was even outshone by fellow summer recruit Darwin Nunez who scored in the second half for Liverpool.
Haaland faced criticism for his performance, as many trolled him to be a flop signing and one who would struggle to make an impact in England.
However, he settled all doubts and alleviated any pressure that had been building against him by scoring a brace on his Premier League debut in a 2-0 victory over West Ham United.
He continued to ease into English football as he scored 9 goals in his first 5 Premier League games including back-to-back hat-tricks against Crystal Palace and Nottingham Forest. His truly deserves his number 9 Jersey.
Any doubts after his arrival were settled by the end of August following his brilliant goalscoring form.
An already deadly Manchester City force became even more brutal with the arrival of the phenomenal Norwegian forward.
Haaland’s ‘telepathic’ communication with maestro Kevin De Bruyne brought fear to opposition defenders as they struggled to contain both players.
He ended the season breaking the English record for most goals in a Premier League season as he bagged 36 goals in the Premier League and 12 goals in the UEFA Champions League as Manchester City won.
The big Norwegian ended the season with 52 goals in 53 appearances. He won both the English Golden Boot and the European Golden Boot and was voted second in the 2023 Ballon d’Or.
He also lit up the Etihad in his first Manchester derby as he scored a hat-trick alongside Phil Foden three goals as they defeated rivals Manchester United 6-3.
Haaland’s brilliant goalscoring form continued into his second season with a brace in the 3-0 opening day victory over Burnley who were managed by former Manchester City captain Vincent Kompany.
Although he suffered some injuries which allowed him to miss some matches and coincided with a slight dip in form, Haaland ended the season with his second successive English Premier League golden boot ending the campaign with 27 Premier League goals and 38 goals in all competitions.
Every comparison with other strikers in the league was dispersed as he was miles ahead of every other player.
Now into his third season in the blues of Manchester City, Erling Haaland has taken the league once again by storm with 7 goals in his first 3 premier league games, including back-to-back hat-tricks against newly-promoted Ipswich Town and Londoners West Ham United.
Haaland’s impact on the Premier League has been nothing short of phenomenal. His statistics are staggering as records have fallen at the feet of this young superstar.
Some of the records already broken by the Norwegian forward during his time in England are:
– Fastest player to reach 50 Premier League goals (48 games).
– Most goals in a Premier League season (36 goals).
– Most goals in all competitions by a Premier League player in one season (52 goals).
Haaland’s eight premier league hat-trick in 69 games is only four shy of City’s legend Sergio Aguero who scored twelve in 275 games.
He has 70 goals in 69 premier league games and 97 goals in 102 games overall for Manchester City. These numbers are simply extraordinary.
Haaland’s world-class abilities such as his speed, power, and finishing abilities already make him a nightmare for defenders. And with his staggering statistics, he has exposed weaknesses in defenses.
With Manchester City’s current dominance of the league coupled with his celestial statistics, Haaland and Manchester City have made the Premier League a ‘farmer’s league’.
