Erling Haaland equals Premier League record with 50th Manchester City goal
Haaland reached the latest milestone of his sensational season as he opened the scoring for City from the spot against Fulham
Erling Haaland has equalled the record for the most goals in a Premier League season, scoring from the penalty spot to give Manchester City the lead away to Fulham.
Haaland's third-minute opener was his 50th goal this term in all competitions – and his 34th in the Premier League, equalling the all-time high first set by Andy Cole for Newcastle in 1993/94, then by Alan Shearer for Blackburn in 1994/95.
But those were both 42-game campaigns – which makes Haaland's prolific exploits all the more incredible.
The Norwegian hitman broke Mo Salah's 38-match season record of 32 goals when he capped off City's 4-1 thrashing of Arsenal in midweek – a result which may well ultimately secure a third successive title for Pep Guardiola's reigning champions.
Only seven of the 22-year-old's 34 Premier League goals have come from the penalty spot – meaning that even without them, he'd still be three clear of Harry Kane in the Golden Boot race.
And with City definitely having nine fixtures remaining in all competitions – 10 if they reach the final of the Champions League – it's not beyond the realms of possibility that Haaland surpasses Dixie Dean's record for the most goals in a single campaign by a player from England's top flight: he's struck 17 times in his last 10 appearances.
Dean scored an astonishing 65 goals in league and cup for Everton way back in 1927/28.
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Tom Hancock started freelancing for FourFourTwo in April 2019 and has also written for the Premier League and Opta Analyst, among others. He supports Wycombe Wanderers and has a soft spot for Wealdstone. A self-confessed statto, he has been known to watch football with a spreadsheet (or several) open...