Man City 7-0 RB Leipzig: Erling Haaland scores five as City reach quarter-finals
Manchester City’s Erling Haaland made history with an exceptional five-goal performance, propelling his team to the Champions League quarter-finals by defeating RB Leipzig.
Haaland’s remarkable feat earned him multiple records, including the quickest and youngest player to score 30 goals in Europe’s premier club competition. He also became the youngest player to score five goals in a single Champions League match, a feat accomplished only by Lionel Messi and Luiz Adriano.
The 22-year-old striker has now scored an impressive 39 goals in all competitions this season, making him the first City player to achieve this milestone in a single campaign. Furthermore, he has scored five hat-tricks, which is three more than any other player in the big five leagues.
On the same historic night, City’s Ilkay Gundogan scored a precise low shot into the bottom corner, which would have typically received high praise. However, it was overshadowed by Haaland’s performance, which matched City’s 7-0 victory over Schalke in 2019.
Following this impressive display, no team, including Real Madrid, would wish to be drawn against Pep Guardiola’s side in the last-eight draw on Friday. The club’s former captain, Vincent Kompany, can only hope that City has gotten this level of performance out of their system when his team Burnley visits the Etihad Stadium in the FA Cup on Saturday.
‘Leipzig heaviest European defeat’
Leipzig coach Marco Rose may argue that Manchester City shouldn’t have been given the penalty that allowed Haaland to score the first goal. Although Benjamin Henrichs was very close to Rodri, VAR intervened, and it was evident that the defender had his arms out when the ball hit his hand. Haaland calmly converted the penalty and made it 2-0 when he reacted quickly to Kevin De Bruyne’s powerful shot that hit the crossbar and bounced into an open net.
In first-half stoppage time, Haaland completed his hat-trick when Amadou Haidara’s clearance off the line fell straight to him. At this point, Leipzig might have considered conceding, but there was more to come. Ilkay Gundogan scored an excellent goal, and then Haaland added two more. The Norwegian’s fourth came after Blaswich saved a Manuel Akanji effort, and the ball bounced to him, as it did for his fifth goal, which marked the first time in his career that he scored five times in a single game.
Haaland’s father, Alfie, who was watching from an executive box, stood up and led the applause for his son. Guardiola wisely decided to take Haaland off the field after his fifth goal, and the striker left to a standing ovation from the crowd. City eased off, and De Bruyne scored with the last kick of the game, condemning Leipzig to their heaviest European defeat.
