I am just a Norwegian guy scoring goals – Erling Haaland plays down comparisons to Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo
Erling Haaland was in a modest mood ahead of Manchester City's clash with Borussia Dortmund
Manchester City striker Erling Haaland has laughed off suggestions he can be compared to Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
The Norway international has scored 26 goals in 16 games this season, continuing his phenomenal record since joining City from Borussia Dortmund, who they meet in the Champions League tomorrow night.
Added to stints with Molde and RB Salzburg, the 25-year-old has scored 300 career goals in 370 appearances. The only two players over the past 20 years that can come close to those figures are Messi and Ronaldo.
Inevitably, comparisons are drawn but Haaland says they are wide of the mark.
“No, not at all! No-one can get close to them two, so no,” he said.
“I’m a Norwegian guy, and for me I should not think I am something just because I’m scoring goals. Simple as that. I’m just Erling and this is something that will never change…”
Haaland not interested in breaking records
Haaland has netted 98 times in 107 Premier League games and is firmly on course to break Alan Shearer’s all-time record of 260 goals.
“I have to ignore them [the records],” he added. “I don’t really know any records but I know his Premier League one. Again, it is not something I can think about. Thinking about records I can break is the last thing on my mind, I try to help the team win football games. That is my job and that is my main focus.
“I know it’s boring, I know you want me to say the complete opposite but that’s not how it is.”
Haaland was praised earlier by his club boss Pep Guardiola for his humble attitude and the blond-haired frontman says he is quite happy taking one game at a time.
“Yes, definitely,” he said. “Two days ago we had a game and that’s history now. We need to focus on tomorrow and that’s how my brain works. That’s how I need to think because I cannot think too much. I need to think in the present.”
Short pre-season helped me – Haaland
City took part in the Club World Cup over the summer and had a short pre-season but that seems to have helped Haaland.
“I don’t know. I think it is more the feeling. I felt really good in pre-season even though our pre-season was like two weeks,” he said. “I felt really good, I felt energised. In the end, you need the energy and you need to feel good to perform good and from the first second I felt overloaded with energy and ready to go again. That was my thought.”