“I am kind of living a dream” – Erling Haaland breaks silence after beating Lionel Messi to UEFA Men’s Player of the Year award
Manchester City star Erling Haaland was pleased to be named the UEFA Men’s Player of the Year ahead of Lionel Messi. The Norwegian helped the Cityzens win the European treble in the 2022-23 season, which was also his debut campaign with the English giants.
Haaland was named as Europe's best men's player for last season at the UEFA Champions League draw in Monaco on Thursday, August 31. Messi finished second in the voting with 227 points as compared to the City star's 352.
The 23-year-old's fellow treble winners, Kevin De Bruyne, Ilkay Gundogan and Rodri finished third, fourth and fifth in the voting, respectively. Kylian Mbappe, Luka Modric, Marcelo Brozovic, Declan Rice, Alexis Mac Allister, and Jesus Navas completed the top 10.
After winning the award, here's what Erling Haaland had to say to uefa.com:
"I am kind of living a dream. This was my dream when I was young, so to be able to do this together with my teammates is something special."
Erling Haaland broke multiple goalscoring records last season. He finished as the Premier League's top scorer with 36 goals, a new record, and the Champions League's top scorer with 12 goals.
How Erling Haaland and Lionel Messi have fared in the new season
Both Erling Haaland and Lionel Messi have started the new season for their respective teams in fine fashion. While the former continues to represent Manchester City, Messi left Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) to join Major League Soccer (MLS) side Inter Miami on a free transfer.
The Norwegian hitman has so far played in five matches for City across competitions in the 2023-24 season and has scored three goals. Messi, on the other hand, has already helped his new side win their first-ever silverware.
The Argentine scored 10 goals in seven Leagues Cup matches to help Miami win the tournament. He then assisted twice in the US Open Cup semifinal against Cincinnati to put his side on the cusp of winning another trophy.
In the MLS, he has scored once in two matches as Miami push for a play-off spot.