“Any club in the world would have been 4-0 at half time against Man City today” – Frank Leboeuf on Manchester United's derby loss, hails 'alien' Erling Haaland
Former Chelsea defender Frank Leboeuf has heaped praise on Manchester City striker Erling Haaland for his performance against Manchester United yesterday (October 2).
The Norwegian helped his side win 6-3 in the Premier League in a one-sided Manchester derby at the Etihad. Haaland scored a hat-trick and provided two assists.
He scored two goals in the first half, both coming from Kevin De Bruyne assists. Haaland first rose highest to score via a header from a corner. He then emphatically finished from a beautiful De Bruyne cross. Haaland's brace helped City to a 4-0 lead at half-time.
Leboeuf has said that while the Red Devils were poor on the day, the Norwegian striker would've been unmanageable for any team. He told ESPN FC:
“Since he signed for Manchester City and maybe before at Dortmund, the guy's an alien, it's impossible to cope with the guy. It feels as if the ball is going to come into play, he tracks you, he changes his mind and then go far post and get the goal. Only he can score a goal like that again."
He added:
"De Bruyne's assist is great, but you have to launch your leg, and only a tall guy can reach that. He's fantastic; right now he's the best striker in the world, simple as that."
Leboeuf also praised Manchester City for their performance, saying:
“Any club in the world would have been 4-0 at half time against Man City today. I'm not trying to make Man United's defence less painful, but that's the reality of it; the way they played, the way the found each other and the way they finished the action was spot on.”
Haaland completed his hat-trick in the second half and so did Phil Foden.
.@ErlingHaaland's third hat-trick of the season! ✨
#ManCity https://t.co/KuVlmUz0p6
Manchester United, meanwhile, scored three goals in the second half, via a brace from Anthony Martial off the bench and another from Antony.
Erling Haaland hat-trick floors Manchester United
Manchester City signed Haaland from Borussia Dortmund for an initial fee of £51 million and it has certainly paid off so far.
His hat-trick against Manchester United took him to 14 goals in just eight league games this season. For context, he's just nine goals behind last season's Golden Boot winners, Mohamed Salah and Son Heung-Min, with a whopping 30 games to go.
The Norwegian also broke the record of being the quickest to three Premier League hat-tricks, doing so in just eight games. All three of them have come in his previous three home matches. He's now also four goals ahead of the next player with the most goals after eight Premier League games.
List of players who have scored @premierleague hat-tricks in three consecutive home matches:
- Erling Haaland 💫
#ManCity https://t.co/4Lujzkq7OB
With the win, Manchester City kept the pressure on league leaders Arsenal, who are just one point above them. Manchester United, meanwhile, are sixth, nine points behind Arsenal but have a game in hand.