LIVE: Freak striker set to be next global superstar

With Lionel Messi connected his mode to Inter Miami and Cristiano Ronaldo already successful Saudi Arabia, it's clip for football's adjacent planetary superstar to emerge.

Step guardant Erling Haaland, the Norwegian extremity instrumentality who has smashed his mode done defences successful a grounds breaking archetypal play with Manchester City.

Standing 1.95m with flowing blond locks, the striker is simply a daunting sight, with devastating powerfulness and gait to spell with his precision successful beforehand of goal.

Youngsters including the lad of teammate Kevin De Bruyne are emulating Haaland's hairstyle.

"They each person hairsbreadth similar that," De Bruyne told Belgian broadcaster VTM this week.

Image is 1 thing, but it is Haaland's prowess connected the tract that is propelling him to the apical of the sport.

Perhaps lone Paris Saint-Germain guardant Kylian Mbappe and Real Madrid winger Vinicius Junior tin situation the 22-year-old Haaland to the rubric of the world's champion successful the post-Messi and Ronaldo era.

On Sunday (AEST), Haaland could occurrence City to its archetypal Champions League rubric and a historical treble of trophies aft winning the Premier League and FA Cup successful a play successful which helium has exceeded each expectations aft signing from Borussia Dortmund past summer.

His goalscoring talents were already good known.

European giants Real Madrid and Manchester United were among his admirers.

But his feats astatine City person defied content astatine times and acceptable caller standards successful England's apical flight.

With 36 goals successful the Premier League, helium acceptable a caller benchmark successful the part by breaking the grounds of 34, which was jointly held by Andy Cole and Alan Shearer.

It had stood for 29 years.

He scored 52 successful each competitions, including six chapeau tricks.

Haaland's 5 goals against Leipzig successful the Champions League matched the grounds held by Messi and Luiz Adriano for the astir successful a azygous crippled successful European football's apical nine competition.

He besides became the fastest and youngest subordinate to scope 30 Champions League goals.

"His mentality is to people more, more," City manager Pep Guardiola said.

While helium volition apt beryllium the subordinate Inter Milan fears astir successful the last successful Istanbul, Haaland is connected thing of a scoring drought heading into the game.

Just 1 extremity successful his past 7 matches represents his worst tally for 5 years, dating backmost to erstwhile helium was inactive establishing himself astatine Norwegian squad Molde.

That caller adust spell, however, has done thing to shingle the consciousness that helium is 1 of the fewer players susceptible of taking implicit from Messi and Ronaldo arsenic football's adjacent planetary icon.

And astatine 22, helium is inactive processing his game.

"I americium inactive young. I tin amended a batch and I americium astatine the cleanable place, to enactment with the champion manager and players successful the world," helium said, describing Guardiola arsenic a "detail freak... determination (are) ever things you tin get amended at."

Haaland's all-round crippled has improved aft processing much of an knowing with his City teammates.

He was outstanding, for instance, successful the 4-0 triumph against Real Madrid successful the Champions League semi-finals, contempt not getting connected the scoresheet.

Just arsenic Messi and Ronaldo's rivalry helped thrust them to adjacent greater heights — sharing 12 Ballon d'Or trophies betwixt them — Haaland's superior contention for the rubric of the world's No.1 subordinate is apt to travel from Mbappe and Vinicius.

But portion Haaland whitethorn not person their finesse oregon intricate footwork, his earthy power, athleticism and scoring instinct sets him apart.

The top players, however, are judged by the trophies they win.

Messi's World Cup triumph with Argentina successful December has, for many, settled the statement arsenic to who is the top retired of him and Ronaldo, who has ne'er won the competition.

Haaland is already playing catch-up successful presumption of trophies successful examination to Mbappe and Vinicius.

But he's 1 crippled distant from adding the Champions League to his Premier League and FA Cup collection.

Mbappe, a World Cup victor with France successful 2018, is inactive to triumph successful the Champions League.

Brazil prima Vinicius won it past twelvemonth with Madrid.

Given Haaland is improbable to triumph large honors with Norway, nine titles and idiosyncratic records are apt to beryllium his accidental of establishing himself up of Mbappe and Vinicius arsenic the champion of his generation.

He feels similar the last portion of the puzzle for Guardiola successful the coach's pursuit of the Champions League title.

Having won it doubly arsenic manager of Barcelona with Messi, Guardiola has repeatedly travel up abbreviated successful the contention since then.

"The Premier League, they won it 2 times successful a enactment earlier I came here," Haaland said.

"So they cognize however to triumph the Premier League. The lone happening they miss present is the Champions League, you tin deliberation and work betwixt the words, and the lines, I person been coming present for a reason."

While Mbappe and Vinicius contiguous the imaginable for a semipermanent rivalry, Messi apt provides the biggest situation to Haaland if helium is to triumph the Ballon d'Or this year.

Argentina's World Cup occurrence could onshore Messi the accolade of the world's champion subordinate for a record-extending eighth time.

A Champions League trophy for Haaland mightiness alteration that.

Either way, Haaland looks apt to beryllium a contender for galore years to come.

Not that filling Messi's shoes volition beryllium an casual task.

Even Haaland's singular feats this play person fallen abbreviated of Messi's astir prolific run erstwhile helium scored 73 goals successful each competitions for Barcelona successful 2011-12, including 50 successful the Spanish league.

Ronaldo, meanwhile, scored 61 for Real Madrid successful 2014-15.

Perhaps that is wherefore Haaland was coy erstwhile precocious asked if helium was present the champion goal-scorer successful the world.

"I don't privation to reply that. I deliberation idiosyncratic other should reply that," Haaland told the BBC.

"But I scored astir goals this season, I think, truthful that's a bully start."