MANCHESTER, UK - The arrival of Erling Haaland at the Etihad Stadium in the summer of 2022 was billed as the final piece of the puzzle for Manchester City.
What transpired was not merely an addition, but a seismic shift in the Premier League and European football, as the Norwegian striker delivered a debut season for the ages, culminating in a historic treble: the Premier League, the FA Cup, and the Champions League.
Erling Braut Haaland with 2022-23 UCL Trophy
Haaland’s performance was defined by a ruthless, almost robotic efficiency in front of goal, combining blistering pace, immense physical power, and an ice-cold finishing instinct. His record-breaking statistics tell the story of a season of unprecedented dominance.
Performance Highlights: A Hurricane of Goals
Haaland immediately set the Premier League alight. He shattered the long-standing record for the most goals scored in a single Premier League season, netting an astonishing 36 goals in just 35 top-flight games, eclipsing the previous 38-game season record of 34 goals held by Andy Cole and Alan Shearer.
His impact was felt across all competitions, where he registered an eye-watering total of 52 goals in 53 appearances—the most ever by a player at an English top-flight club in a single campaign.
- Two hat-tricks in his first five Premier League games, the fastest player to reach that mark.
- Becoming the fastest player to score 10 and 20 Premier League goals.
- A stunning five-goal haul against RB Leipzig in the Champions League round of 16, only the third player in UCL history to achieve the feat.
- Finishing as the top scorer in the Champions League with 12 goals.
The Coaches' Verdict: Praise and Perspective
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola, a man who has coached some of the greatest players in history, spoke with both admiration and a characteristic focus on the collective.
Reflecting on the striker's instant success and character, Guardiola stated: 'He has impressed the most off the pitch with his lovely character. The bigger stars are more humble normally, they understand better. Maybe that is why they are the biggest stars.'
Speaking about Haaland's insatiable drive, Guardiola acknowledged that the striker's mindset was aligned perfectly with the club's lofty ambitions: 'What he has achieved is outstanding. He has that desire, that appetite. He's always asking for more, to score more goals, to get better.'
The player himself, despite the phenomenal numbers, remained focused on the team’s ultimate prize, the Champions League: 'I wanted to get settled as quickly as possible... In the big picture, it [the ambition] was to win the UCL. That's what I said when I came here, that was the goal,' Haaland reflected. He added that the feeling of securing the Treble was 'unreal.'
Haaland's debut season not only delivered silverware but also secured him a host of individual accolades, including the PFA Players' Player of the Year, the FWA Footballer of the Year, and the Premier League Player of the Season.
In a season where records were not just broken but completely obliterated, Erling Haaland established himself as one of world football's most dominant forces, a lethal number nine whose arrival ushered in a golden era for Manchester City. The Viking has landed, and the goal-scoring paradigm has been irrevocably shifted.
