Andy Cole has insisted he is not bothered if Manchester City striker Erling Haaland breaks his record for the number of goals scored in a single Premier League campaign.
Haaland has been in scintillating form in front of goal since arriving at the Etihad from Borussia Dortmund in the summer. The 22-year-old has scored a staggering 33 goals in 34 appearances across all competitions and currently leads the Premier League's Golden Boot race with 27 strikes already this campaign.
The Norwegian ace needs just seven more goals in the top flight to match the 34 netted by Cole for Newcastle United in 1993/94 and Alan Shearer for Blackburn Rovers in 1994/95. Given that Haaland has 12 more Premier League games to beat the record, it appears inevitable that, barring injury, he will go on and smash it.
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Despite this, former Manchester United and City frontman Cole suggested that "records are there to be broken" and claimed he would not care if the City man does beat his goal tally.
"Records are there to be broken, it's that simple," he told Stats Perform. "When people have mentioned it to me, it's not as if I'm going home and crying and saying, 'Oh no'.
"I've said to people it doesn't bother me in the slightest, I don't care. If someone deserved to break that record, go ahead and do it.
"I'm not going to sit here rocking myself to sleep in the hallway hoping he doesn't do it; it doesn't bother me because I'm not so conceited. I'm really not.
"I don't care if he does it. I'll be the first one to congratulate him. Records are there to be broken."
Cole also suggested that he disagrees with any criticism of Haaland, claiming that his goalscoring record so far this season - which includes four hat-tricks - speaks for itself.
He added: "People say he shouldn't have signed for Man City because he doesn't fit in. But if I've got 27 goals by February, and everyone's telling me that I've made the wrong move... what's the right move, then?
"You've got 27 goals by the end of February and you've got the chance to get to 40 goals. I'm not sure what everyone expects from him."
City face Crystal Palace on Saturday at Selhurst Park and Pep Guardiola will be hoping Haaland can replicate the hat-trick he bagged in the reverse fixture earlier this season.
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