Erling Haaland is an extraordinary centre-forward but considering he is far from perfect, it is remarkable that he has always been such an outstanding goalscorer.
The Manchester City marksman’s success speaks for itself but it cannot be said for certain that his attributes are far superior to the legendary strikers of yesteryear.
For instance, while Erling Haaland is largely ice-cold in front of goal, it cannot be said for certain that his finishing is miles better than the likes of Sergio Aguero and Robin van Persie to name a few.
Last season, the former Borussia Dortmund hero told TNT Sports that his finishing was not up to par himself: “First, I’m looking at myself, I haven’t been doing things good enough. I haven’t been scoring my chances so I have to do better. A lot of it is on me and I haven’t been good enough.”
Even when analysing Haaland’s finishing, he can be wasteful at times, such as against Brighton & Hove Albion last weekend while lacking the variety of goals that iconic strikers like Thierry Henry and Romario possessed. Furthermore, even Ole Gunnar Solskjaer advised his countryman to improve his heading.
Erling Haaland has his flaws but he is a truly special player
Norway’s vice-captain told GQ about his interaction with the former Molde boss: “The first thing I think he said to me was, ‘You have no idea how to head the ball. We have to work on that.’
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However, as Kevin De Bruyne claimed, Haaland is a goalscoring machine — and the statistics back the Belgian’s claim up — as the Leeds-born marksman has scored the most goals out of any player in Premier League history after making 100 appearances (88).
Erling Haaland knee slides during Wolverhampton Wanderers v Manchester City
Photo by James Gill – Danehouse/Getty Images
The Leeds-born striker has his strengths and he gets the best out of them, such as his athleticism. Haaland is one of the Premier League’s fastest players and with the 25-year-old being 6’5″, he often bullies defenders when engaging in the signature physical battles that epitomise the English game.
The striker’s runs can often be one-dimensional as well as he tends to veer off to the far post and even in possession, he is not as gifted as the likes of legends such as Ronaldo Nazario or Marco van Basten.
Yet, Haaland has 310 career goals in 376 games as his positioning and sheer desire to put the ball in the back of the net are second to none.
ALL-TIME STATS ERLING HAALAND
MATCHES 376
GOALS 310
As Jamie Carragher stressed, Haaland is a phenomenon and his outstanding goal record sums up why he is already one of the most naturally gifted goalscorers the game has ever seen.
It could be argued that Manchester City often fail to play to the two-time Premier League winner’s strengths, as they can often be pedestrian in possession and avoid playing on the break. Yet, Haaland continues to deliver, which is a credit to his inarguable effectiveness and uniqueness as a player.
Erling Haaland told he would fail at one Premier League club
However, Gabriel Agbonlahor claimed Haaland may struggle if he played for Manchester United, saying: “Haaland wouldn’t score in this Man United team in the Premier League.”
“They starve him [Rasmus Hojlund] of service, Antony gets the ball, he cuts inside, doesn’t put crosses in, [Marcus] Rashford does the same on the left-hand side, no one puts crosses in for him!”
Even at Manchester City, Haaland often feeds off scraps but as he has proven time and again throughout his career, the star striker will remain productive regardless of the circumstances as he is a truly gifted goalscorer.