Manchester City striker Erling Haaland has put in a staggering performance ahead of this weekend’s showdown with bitter rivals Manchester United.
The Norwegian forward has already been under the spotlight during this international break, with supporters and analysts alike questioning whether Pep Guardiola’s squad could reignite their form after a stuttering start to the Premier League campaign.
Manchester City’s narrow 2-1 defeat to Brighton prior to the September pause for national team action only added to the pressure, making Haaland’s return to goalscoring form a perfectly timed lift for the Etihad Stadium camp.
Pep Guardiola will undoubtedly have been watching on closely as several of his stars turned out for their nations, with concerns already mounting after injuries to John Stones, Omar Marmoush, and Nico O’Reilly in recent days.
Haaland, however, provided a rare positive update, showing no signs of fatigue or fitness issues and instead delivering a career-defining performance.
Ahead of Manchester City’s arguably must-win outing against rivals Manchester United, star-striker Erling Haaland has put in the ultimate performance for Norway in an 11-1 rout over Moldova in FIFA World Cup qualifying.
Three goals in the first-half secured Haaland a hat-trick in the space of just 32 minutes, while he also turned provider for Norway’s opening goal of the match, finished off by Felix Horn Myhre.
The second-half would get even better for the 25-year-old, scoring again in the 52nd and 83rd minutes, whilst also ending the contest as the final assist-provider, this time for Thelo Aasgaard – who himself scored four goals in 26 minutes having come on as a substitute.
That result for Norway leaves themselves and Erling Haaland as Group I leaders having played five matches, sitting on 15 points with five wins from five games, scoring 24 goals and conceding just three – ahead of Gianluigi Donnarumma’s Italy in second on nine points.
Haaland’s display also became one of the rare matches to be awarded a perfect 10.0 FotMob rating, joining the likes of Neymar’s showing against Toulouse in 2017 and Thomas Meunier’s performance versus Gibraltar the same year.
Most recently, Omar Faraj of Halmstads BK joined that exclusive club earlier in 2025.
For Manchester City, the performance could not have come at a better time. Pep Guardiola has been publicly pushing for greater efficiency in front of goal following his side’s struggles in recent weeks, and Haaland’s confidence in front of goal should provide a huge psychological boost heading into the Manchester derby.
Should the Norwegian carry his international form into the Etihad clash, he could once again prove the difference-maker in a game that could define Manchester City’s early-season momentum.
A positive result over Ruben Amorim’s struggling squad would steady nerves and silence sceptics, while another defeat would only intensify questions about Pep Guardiola’s ability to turn around a campaign already under strain from mounting injuries.
