Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola said Erling Haaland is a "gift to all of us" after the Norwegian made history with five goals against RB Leipzig to fire his team into the Champions League quarter-finals.
Haaland became the fastest and youngest player to reach 30 Champions League goals on Tuesday night as City destroyed Leipzig 7-0 at Etihad Stadium, his 32 coming in just 25 appearances. The 22-year-old striker now has 39 goals for the season – the most by a City player in a single campaign – while his five hat-tricks are more than any other player in Europe's big five leagues.
“Five goals, what can I say? I said many times, he’s a joyful guy. His mood in the locker room is always happiness," Guardiola said. “He is a gift to all of us. He is a huge competitor, his mentality is there. He scored five goals which is not easy.”
Haaland's arrival from Borussia Dortmund last summer has seen City adjust their style of play, having won the Premier League title last season without a recognised centre-forward.
While his presence has reaped the obvious reward of a record-breaking number of goals, there has still been some criticism levelled at City when Haaland is not centrally involved in games, with claims the team becomes easier to defend against when the Norwegian is affectively isolated.
Not so against Leipzig as Haaland was in the thick of the attacking action for City. In addition to his five goals, Ilkay Gundogan and Kevin de Bruyne, with the last kick of the game, found the target to ensure a complete demolition of Leipzig.
“Today he scored five goals and I think he made 30-35 ball contacts and this is what we are looking for,” Guardiola said. “I had the feeling when you are involved in the game offensively, defensively, when the ball comes to score a goal, you are more clever, more precise, you are in the game.
Man City v RB Leipzig player ratings
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MANCHESTER CITY RATINGS: Ederson - 6 Lucky to not have been sent off in the first half after he came out of his box but clearly missed the ball and fouled Werner in the process. Was hardly tested for the entirety of the match. Getty -
John Stones - 7 An impressive performance in an unfamiliar role on the right side of defence. Did his defensive duty well and added an extra body to City’s midfield. AP -
Nathan Ake - 8 showed great vision to play Haaland through on goal with a pass from his own half in the 11th minute. Kept Konrad quiet on the right hand side. AFP -
Manuel Akanji - 8 Began the move that led to the second goal by winning his aerial challenge and finding De Bruyne close to the Leipzig penalty area. Met a corner with a smart side-footed shot which the goalkeeper punched into the path of Haaland for City’s sixth. Reuters -
Ruben Dias - 8 Played a huge part in the third goal by winning the header that came off the crossbar and which eventually fell into the path of Haaland. Hardly put a foot wrong in defence. Getty -
Rodri - 7 Almost gifted Leipzig a way back into the match when he played a dire pass into the path of Forsberg in the 35th minute. Successfully broke up the few counter-attacks Leipzig managed. Getty -
Bernardo Silva - 7 Helped City dominate the right wing with his intelligent play and combination with De Bruyne. Reuters -
Ilkay Gundogan - 8 Blazed high and wide from close range when he was found in the box by De Bruyne early in the game. Couldn’t beat the goalkeeper when he was played through on goal again by De Bruyne in the 35th minute. Grabbed a well deserved goal by scoring the fourth four minutes into the second half. PA -
Kevin De Bruyne - 9 Assisted Haaland for the second goal by hitting a spectacular left-footed shot which came off the crossbar for the Norwegian to head into an empty net. Capped off an impressive performance by rounding off the scoring in the last minute. Action Images -
Jack Grealish - 7 Failed to get past Henrichs several times in the first half and crowned it all by diving when he had just one man to beat in the 35th minute. Made his first real positive impact by assisting Gundogan for City’s fourth goal. AFP -
Erling Haaland - 10 A five-star performance. A penalty kick to open the scoring, three rebounds, one lucky ball that came off his shin and into the net saw the Norwegian become the third player to score five goals in a single Champions League game after Lionel Messi and Luiz Adriano. Action Images -
SUBS: Phil Foden (Grealish, 55) - 6 Could have had an assist just two minutes after coming on but the goalkeeper denied Mahrez from close range. PA -
Riyad Mahrez (Gundogan, 55) - 7 Got close to getting his name on the scoresheet with his first touch but was denied by the goalkeeper. Assisted De Bruyne with a pass in-field for the seventh. Getty -
Julian Alvarez (Haaland, 63) - 5 Had a number of half chances after coming on but couldn't get his name on the scoresheet. AP -
Sergio Gomez (Stones, 64) - 6 Replaced Stones at right back and did well. Action Images -
Kalvin Phillips (Rodri, 64) - 5 Helped keep things ticking in midfield. AFP -
RB LEIPZIG RATINGS: Janis Blaswich - 6 Guessed right for Haaland’s penalty but the pace on the ball was too much. Made five saves in the first half to keep the scoreline respectable. Unlucky to concede seven. Action Images -
David Raum - 5 Got caught ball watching as De Bruyne played Gundogan through on goal in the 40th minute. Failed to deal with several crosses from De Bruyne. Getty -
Benjamin Henrichs - 6 Defended well against Grealish when City were piling up the pressure in search of an early goal. Must have felt aggrieved after the referee decided to penalise him for what looked like a harsh handball in the box while contesting a header. Reuters -
Willi Orban - 4 Breathed a sigh of relief after Haaland outmuscled and outran him but then failed to beat goalkeeper early in the game. Should have done better to stop Akanji from taking the shot that led to City’s sixth goal. Getty -
Josko Gvardiol - 4 Allowed Dias a free header which came off the bar and into the path of Haaland for City's third goal. Guilty of several errors under pressure from attackers in the second half. Action Images -
Kevin Kampl - 4 Should have done more to stop De Bruyne from taking the shot that led to City’s second goal. Got overwhelmed alongside Haidara in midfield. Action Images -
Amadou Haidara - 4 Had a good chance to reduce the two-goal deficit when he was found in the box but could only manage a tame shot at Ederson’s goal. Struggled against City’s midfield. PA -
Konrad Laimer - 4 A very quiet night on the right side of attack as he failed to get the better of Ake on the few times he had a chance to go past him. AFP -
Emil Forsberg - 5 Overhit what looked like a simple pass to set up Werner for a tap-in in the 35th minute. Struggled to get on the ball and create anything for his teammates. AP -
Dominik Szobozlai - 5 Played a good cross into the box which Haidara failed to take advantage of in the first half. Did very little until he was subbed off. EPA -
Timo Werner - 6 Worked hard. Almost got on the end of an overhit Forsberg pass in the 35th minute. EPA -
SUBS: Yussuf Poulsen (Werner, 63) - 5 Hardly had a sniff at goal. Getty -
Andre Silva (Forsberg, 63) - 6 Had a decent effort on goal in the 78th minute. AFP -
Mohamed Simakan (Haidara, 63) - 6 Came on to help with damage limitation. Reuters -
Dani Olmo (Szobozlai, 72) - N/A Little impact. Getty -
Lukas Klostermann (Henrichs, 80) - N/A. EPA
“It’s difficult to score – he can do it though – when you don't touch the ball for 40 or 50 minutes. Sometimes it's his fault, sometimes he doesn’t move. I said against [Crystal] Palace (where City won 1-0 with a Haaland penalty), you didn’t play well today. But other days, it's our fault.
“In Leipzig [where City drew the first leg 1-1], we could not find him. We did not find him in the second half. We are working a little bit because we try to make the process sometimes quicker."
Leipzig manager Marco Rose admitted City were simply too good on the night.
"That was an incredible performance," he said. "They didn't allow us to control the game at all, at no stage of the game. The bottom line is disappointing for us but they really deserved it."
