Haaland could hit 350 goals before Messi and CR7, but shuns comparisons | OneFootball

Erling Haaland will have a special reunion this Wednesday (5th)! 

The striker will lead the attack of Manchester City against Borussia Dortmund, his former team, in the fourth round of the UEFA Champions League.

The game could mark another impressive achievement in the Norwegian star's career.

Haaland is just three goals away from reaching 350 goals as a professional player.

The task is not simple, but it is not impossible for someone who lives to challenge records.

The City star has 347 goals in 405 official games, with an impressive average of 0.86 per match.

In the Champions League, his numbers are even more impressive: 53 goals in 51 games.

However, the striker has only managed to score a hat-trick once in the tournament, when he debuted for Red Bull Salzburg in a rout over Genk.

Since then, he has scored five goals in a single game (against RB Leipzig, in 2023) and scored twice 14 times.

More precocious than Messi, CR7, and Mbappé

If he reaches 350 goals this Wednesday (5th), Haaland will achieve the milestone at 25 years, three months, and 16 days, surpassing names like Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappé in the pace to reach the feat.

Messi reached his 350th goal at 25 years and 10 months, after 474 games, with an average of 0.74 goals per game.

Meanwhile, Mbappé reached the same number at 26 years and one month, after 485 matches, with an average of 0.72.

Other top scorers took longer: Cristiano Ronaldo only got there at 28 years and one month (0.57 per game). 

Lewandowski, at 29 years and five months (0.62), while Luis Suárez and Harry Kane, both around 29 years and 10 months, with averages close to 0.6 goals/game.

Haaland, however, dismisses any comparisons with stars like Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. 👇

And what about Pelé?

Neither Haaland nor his contemporaries have managed to match the pace of Pelé, who reached 350 goals at just 22 years and five months, in 277 matches, with an average of 1.27 per game – and already with two World Cups under his belt.

The old 'Law of the Ex'

Dortmund is well aware of the talent it helped to hone.

During his time at the German club, Haaland scored 86 goals in 89 games, along with 19 assists.

And fate has brought him face to face with his former team again in his first season at City.

In their first encounter at the Etihad Stadium, the number 9 decided the game with a beautiful acrobatic goal in a 2-1 victory.

In the return match in Germany, a goalless draw was enough for both teams to advance – and by the end of the campaign, City would be European champions, with Haaland as the top scorer of the Champions League.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.

📸 Carl Recine - 2025 Getty Images