Erling Haaland joins 100-goal Premier League club in madcap Man City win over Fulham

City had led 5-1 with Haaland scoring before the hosts staged a dramatic late rally

Manchester City striker Erling Haaland is the fastest player to 100 Premier League goals, reaching the milestone in only his 111th game. AFP

Erling Haaland added another astonishing chapter to his Manchester City story on Tuesday night as the Norwegian became the fastest player in history to reach 100 Premier League goals, marking the milestone in a chaotic 5-4 victory over Fulham at Craven Cottage.

Haaland’s emphatic first-half finish – his 15th league strike of the season – arrived in just his 111th Premier League appearance, smashing Alan Shearer’s long-standing record of 124 matches. The landmark goal, a thunderous effort steered beyond Bernd Leno after a perfectly measured Jeremy Doku cut-back, underlined once again why City’s No 9 has redefined the scoring landscape since arriving from Borussia Dortmund in 2022.

His manager, Pep Guardiola, paid glowing tribute to the striker afterwards. “It’s incredible, impressive,” he said. “He was outstanding. Hopefully he’s starving hungry to continue with this club and to make more and more goals.”

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Yet Haaland’s historic night nearly unravelled amid another late defensive wobble from City, who allowed Fulham to turn a seemingly one-sided affair into a frantic finish. What had looked like a comfortable 5-1 lead shrank dramatically as Marco Silva’s side mounted a furious late rally, only for Josko Gvardiol’s goal-line clearance in the dying seconds to spare City’s blushes.

“Did you enjoy that, guys?” Guardiola smiled after the match. “Me? Impossible.

“It’s the Premier League, you can’t control, it’s the Premier League. I know you’re going to ask what happened, and I don’t have an answer.

“It’s the emotion, it’s the football. Why you do this, why you do that? But I’m sorry to tell you, we made incredible things today, incredible, because I know how difficult that team is.

“We proved it and scored the goals that we score and the quality we have done. Erling had a chance for 6-3 and immediately later, 5-4.

“And when that happens, it’s just a question of survival. Don’t tell me how, the players don’t know either. At the end we take it.”

Before the chaos, Guardiola’s side had been irresistible. After Haaland struck, he turned creator in the 37th minute, holding off two defenders before sliding a precise pass into the path of Tijjani Reijnders, who lifted a deft chip over Leno for his first goal since August.

Phil Foden, increasingly the heartbeat of City’s attacking play, then curled a superb effort into the top corner just before the interval to extend the advantage. Although Emile Smith Rowe pulled one back in stoppage time with a clever header, Foden restored City’s three-goal cushion moments into the second half, guiding home after Haaland’s neat flick.

When Doku’s strike deflected in off Sander Berge to make it 5-1, the contest appeared over. But City’s growing habit of surrendering control resurfaced. Alex Iwobi stroked home from 18 yards, before Samuel Chukwueze struck twice – the first a powerful drive, the second bundled through a crowded box after Gianluigi Donnarumma flapped at a corner – to haul Fulham within touching distance.

Guardiola, who had watched his side almost concede a two-goal lead in Saturday’s frantic 3-2 win over Leeds, admitted the defensive lapses were troubling. “Of course I was concerned,” he said. “But this will help us in future games. In the end, it was a question of character and resilience.”

“What they showed was impressive,” Fulham boss Marco Silva said of his side. “Normally, losing a heavy score against a side like City, many things can go in their mind.

“Maybe the damage is done, don’t take any risks. But the reaction from the boys was unbelievable, and we probably deserved a fifth goal to equalise the game.”

City held firm through eight tense minutes of added time, ensuring Haaland’s milestone – and the three points – remained intact. The result moves the champions within two points of leaders Arsenal, who face Brentford on Wednesday.