Manchester City forward Erling Haaland defied expectations yet again in Sunday’s 6-3 victory over Manchester United with his third hat-trick of the season after just eight Premier League games.
The 22-year-old took his goals tally to 14 for the domestic campaign, and 17 across all competitions, but he also impressed in another area of his game that has since earned him comparisons to a current Real Madrid icon Karim Benzema.
Former Chelsea, Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur defender William Gallas has praised Haaland for his ability to offer more than just scoring goals for Man City, with two assists in the Manchester derby contributing to an ‘unselfish’ display.
Speaking to Genting Casino , Gallas said: “He reminds me a little bit of Benzema. What I mean with this comparison is that he is the complete player. Strikers are normally a little bit selfish, they just want to score goal after goal after goal, but he is not like this.
“When he gets the ball he has a full picture of what is happening around him and he can play delicious passes, we saw that for the assist that he gave Foden.
“That boy is going to be a legend in the future. He will be the top scorer in the Premier League and he will be considered the best striker in the world, if he is not already, very soon, that is for sure.”
Will Erling Haaland record double figures for assists this season? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
Prior to Sunday’s 6-3 victory, Haaland had just one assist from his first 10 games for Pep Guardiola’s side, which ironically came in the only game he’s so far failed to score in - the 4-0 defeat of Bournemouth in the Premier League on August 13.
But his performance in the Manchester derby proved that he is more than capable of offering an unselfish side to his game, having laid on two assists for fellow hattrick hero Foden, all while ensuring he is still doing his main job of putting the ball in the back of the net.
For Molde, Red Bull Salzburg and Borussia Dortmund, Haaland registered 36 assists in 166 games across all competitions, as per transfermarkt, with 23 of those coming in 89 appearances for the latter during his two-and-a-half-year spell in the Bundesliga.
With regards to Gallas’ comparison to Benzema, the Frenchman’s assist numbers are highly impressive, having set up his teammates 187 times in 760 career matches across all competitions for Lyon and Real Madrid, via transfermarkt.
In the 2011-12 campaign, his efforts were rewarded with the Champions League top assist provider award, having recorded five in 11 games, which is something that is very rarely won by out-and-out strikers. However, he has set the bar over recent years, and now Haaland will look to raise it.
And at just 22-years-old, there is every chance that the Norwegian can achieve similar assists records as Benzema, especially if he is surrounded by players who can match his finishing abilities and provide him the service with which he can pick out a teammate as easily as he can score a goal.
