Erling Haaland needed less than four minutes to score his first ever goal against Liverpool. Aged just 19 at the time, he had started on the bench for RB Salzburg's Champions League visit to Anfield in 2019, despite scoring a hat-trick on his competition debut against Genk. He was introduced by coach Jesse Marsch with his side in the middle of a comeback from three goals down and duly made it 3-3.
It was one of the easiest goals Haaland has ever scored, tapping into an empty net on the hour-mark after being teed up by future Liverpool player Takumi Minamino. The elation of drawing level against Liverpool did not last long though as Mohamed Salah made it 4-3 to the Reds nine minutes later. Still, his first goal on English soil served to bring more recognition to Haaland at the start of his astronomical rise to being the best centre-forward in the world.
And yet that simple goal was the feast before a famine – by Haaland's ridiculously high standards – against Liverpool. In eight matches against the Reds, Haaland has only scored three times, the lowest amount of goals he has scored against a team he has faced at least eight times.
Haaland has scored eight times against Manchester United, five times against Arsenal and four times against both Chelsea and Tottenham. Those four teams are among the 35 sides Haaland has scored four or more goals against throughout his career. In that context, Liverpool, against whom he has scored two goals in six games for City with only one Premier League strike, are Haaland's bogey team.
But Sunday's game against the champions, which begins a pivotal week for the Norwegian goal-machine, is the perfect occasion to end his Liverpool hoodoo and give the Reds the same merciless treatment he has meted out to almost every other team.
Getty Outshone by Nunez
Haaland was left frustrated in Salzburg's home fixture against Liverpool in his breakthrough season, being subbed off in a 2-0 defeat. His first game against the Merseysiders in a City shirt was the 2022 Community Shield, when he was surprisingly upstaged by Darwin Nunez in a 3-1 defeat.
The stiker touched the ball 14 times and missed a simple late effort when he hit the crossbar from a rebound inside the six-yard box. Guardiola exercised caution by remarking: "He didn't score. Another day he will score. He has an incredible quality on that and he will do it. He is going to help us a lot."
The coach was spot-on and in his next game Haaland scored twice against West Ham, his first strikes on the road to his record-breaking 36 goals in a Premier League season. But he has not really helped City beat Liverpool, at least not in the league.
AdvertisementGettyZero wins in the Premier League
The Norwegian drew a blank again the next time he faced Liverpool, the ill-tempered 1-0 defeat in the league at Anfield in October 2022. He did score in the Carabao Cup meeting between the two sides at the Etihad Stadium two months later although he missed their next fixture with injury. City barely noticed his absence though as they won 4-1 on the way to claiming the Premier League title.
Haaland scored in a 1-1 draw at home to Liverpool in November 2023 and he has not found the net against them since, drawing blanks in a 1-1 draw and 2-0 loss at Anfield while missing last season's 0-2 defeat at the Etihad Stadium with injury. It means that Haaland is still waiting for his first win against Liverpool in the Premier League.
Liverpool's results between late September and the end of October, when they lost six out of seven matches while conceding 14 goals, would have lifted Haaland's hopes of turning the tide. But in their last two games against Aston Villa and Real Madrid they have looked more like the team that swept to last season's title and who did the double on City.
Getty ImagesNever felt better
And it was why Haaland warned: "We need to perform as a team and need to be all together, attacking Liverpool and defending as a team. We need to be ready because it’s not going to be an easy game. The competition between Man City and Liverpool has been amazing in previous years – pushing each other to get better and fighting for the title. It’s going to be a difficult game, and we need to be at our best."
Haaland could not be in better form or mindset though as he prepares to set the record straight on Sunday. He has scored 18 goals in 14 matches for City in the Premier League and Champions League plus an additional nine strikes in three matches for Norway.
That's 27 goals in 17 games for club and country, putting him on course to better that insane tally of 57 goals for club and country in 2022-23. Haaland was even prepared to admit that he has never been in a moment of form like this in his career. "It’s been a good start, and I feel really good," he told reporters this week. "I feel this is the best version of myself. I’ve never felt better than now."
InstagramDiligent routine paying off
Last month Haaland opened a window into his daily routine, showing his diligent process to recover from games and training sessions in order to avoid injuries. That routine includes red-light therapy, massages, ice-baths and saunas plus a diet of fresh fish, steaks and raw milk.
And after scoring against former club Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday to make it five goals in four Champions League games, he reiterated how important that routine has been to his current insatiable goalscoring form.
He explained: "To keep sharp, I need to keep my mind in the right place, I need to recover well, I need to get a lot of treatment, I need to eat the right things. I connect when I have to connect on the pitch and then relax as much as I can when I’m at home. It’s about maintaining the energy levels, being motivated and doing the things that are good for my body and for my brain."