Manchester City's Erling Haaland equals 38-game season Premier League goals record
Manchester City striker Erling Haaland scored twice in the first half against Leicester to take his tally to 32 in the Premier League
Manchester City striker Erling Haaland has equalled the record for most goals in a 38-game Premier League season with his two first-half strikes against Leicester on Saturday.
Haaland, who took his tally to 30 in the competition with a double against Southampton last weekend, put City 2-0 ahead against Leicester inside 13 minutes after John Stones had opened the scoring for the champions with a spectacular effort on the bounce from outside the box.
The Norwegian then made it 3-0 after 25 minutes as he latched on to a Kevin de Bruyne pass and clinically beat the onrushing Daniel Iversen with a trademark finish.
That was his 47th goal in all competitions and his 32nd in the Premier League this term, meaning he has equalled the mark set by Mohamed Salah for the most scored in a 38-game campaign.
Salah hit 32 for Liverpool in 2017-18, his debut season in English football, but Haaland is set to obliterate that record with eight fixtures remaining after this one for City.
The record for the most goals in a Premier League season is held jointly by former England strikers Alan Shearer and Andy Cole, although both of those were set in 42-game campaigns.
Haaland was substituted at half-time by manager Pep Guardiola as City won 3-1 at the Etihad on Saturday.
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Ben Hayward is a European football writer and Tottenham Hotspur fan with over 15 years’ experience, he has covered games all over the world - including three World Cups, several Champions League finals, Euros, Copa America - and has spent much of that time in Spain. Ben speaks English and Spanish, currently dividing his time between Barcelona and London, covering all the big talking points of the weekend on FFT: he’s also written several list features and interviewed Guglielmo Vicario for the magazine.