Former Manchester City defender Micah Richards has heaped praise on Erling Haaland after the new Man City striker scored two goals in his Premier League debut yesterday.
The former defender now turned pundit was speaking with Roy Keane following Manchester City’s 2-0 win over West Ham United and both believe Haaland can break a host of domestic records in England.
The 22-year-old Norway international scored twice against West Ham at the London Stadium and was a constant threat throughout the game. He opened his account from the penalty spot in the 36th minute, before doubling his side’s advantage with a fine strike after 65 minutes, thanks to a sublime pass from Kevin De Bruyne.
Speaking about his performance, Sky Sports pundits Richards and Keane were full of praise for Haaland and sent a stark warning to Premier League defences.
“What we knew, people doubted whether he could settle into the Premier League so quickly,” Keane said on Sky Sports.
“Great quality, great run and great movement we have seen. He’s gonna get chances, we have seen it today. People talking about 20 goals, if he’s got penalties more like 30 or 40.
“He’s going to get chances with the quality around him. Good luck to defenders up against him.”
While Richards added: “You look at the first goal for the penalty, it was absolutely brilliant. Watching him live it will cause mayhem this season it really will.”
Since bursting into the scene in 2019, Haaland has broken a host of goal-scoring records in his meteoric career. The former Molde and Borussia Dortmund man became the youngest (20y 231d) and fastest (14 games) player to score 20 Champions League goals.
He is also the first player to score 25 goals in his first 25 Bundesliga outings. And given how he has started his Premier League career, Keane has backed him to break the record for the fastest player to score 50 goals in the Premier League, which is held by Manchester United’s Andy Cole. The striker reached the landmark after just 65 appearances, but Keane has tipped Haaland to do so in a shorter time.
He said: “I don’t think Coley took penalties. If he [Haaland] stays fit and healthy, these records he is capable of smashing all of them.
“It just gives Man City different options in forward positions. West Ham couldn’t get near them. We still look at the options on the bench. Man City look as strong as ever.”
