Erling Haaland is probably the most intimidating name that can give even elite defenders nightmares. The 22-year-old Norwegian has been an unreal addition to the already well-oiled machine of Pep Guardiola.
Erling Haaland made his name back in the Austrian Bundesliga playing for the champions RB Salzburg. Haaland played half a season for the Austrian champions when they were in the Champions League. He played and scored brilliant goals against Liverpool and caught the eyes of the elite European clubs.
German giants Borussia Dortmund snatched him from Salzburg in the January transfer window of the ongoing season. He went on to score 62 goals for the German side in just 67 matches. He scored a debut hat trick for the German outfit coming off the bench. His unreal goalscoring ability made it pretty obvious that Dortmund cannot keep a hold of him.
Erling Haaland, new Man City player 🔵⭐️ #MCFC
▪️ Manchester City will pay €60m [not €75m] release clause to BVB, plus commission to be added.
▪️ His salary will be worth £375,000/week, same level as de Bruyne.
▪️ Medical has been already completed.
The saga is over. 🤝 pic.twitter.com/Qzf3HNDVhN
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) May 10, 2022
All European giants wanted to launch Haaland but Manchester City’s active interest ended the competition. In the summer of 2022, the English Club landed Haaland for a reported $62 million. Since his arrival at the blue part of Manchester, he has scored 18 times in just 13 League matches. He scored 3 hattricks in 8 matches to break the Premier League record.
Where is Erling Haaland from?
Erling was born in Leeds during his father Alf-Inge’s time at Elland Road. Alf-Inge Haaland played for the Norwegian national team as a makeshift defender and predominantly as a midfielder. He faced a career-threatening injury infamously posed by Roy Keane during his spell at Manchester City.
Haaland stayed in Leeds till he was 3 and moved to Bryne with his family. He could have played for the English national team if he wanted to before. However, he chose to represent Norway and was not a part of this recently ended World Cup edition.
Erling Haaland could have played for England but chose Norway
In terms of characteristics and talent, Erling Braut Haaland is one of a kind. He is a generational talent by every means and his predatory instincts are outright scary. An image of Haaland running toward your goal can give any defender a nightmare. Any international team would be delighted to have him as their frontman.
In an interview with GOAL, he said, “I lived here [England] for three-and-a-half, four years. But I lived in Norway for such a long time, so it was natural for me to choose Norway. You never know how it might have been if my father [Alf-Inge] had played longer in England, maybe I would be English! But I’m Norwegian, and I’m proud of it”, about his decision to represent Norway at the International level.