Can anybody stop Man City hot-shot Haaland from emulating Shearer and Kane?

Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi have spent the last 20-odd years making history and rewriting the record books. At some point, two all-time greats will have to hang up their boots for the final time.

New heroes will arise, with some already well on their way to emulating the very best to have ever played the game. When it comes to the art of goal-scoring, Manchester City striker Erling Haaland slots seamlessly into that category.

Questions have been asked – much like they once were of Messi and Ronaldo – about whether seemingly unworldly standards can be maintained. Haaland has provided answers where it matters most – out on the field.

Impossible to ignore

Erling Haaland would go on to break Alan Shearer’s goalscoring record in 154 fewer matches, at his current rate 🤯📈 pic.twitter.com/d6NmNN9DTk

— Premier League (@premierleague) January 17, 2025

Ever since he arrived in Manchester, following in the footsteps of his ex-Blues star father Alf-Inge, Haaland has been a revelation. If he is on the pitch, at the domestic or international level, then football betting markets will side with whoever he is representing.

He is impossible to ignore, with football tips in 2025-26 recognising the claims of 7/1 shots City in another intriguing title race. Their talismanic No.9 is odds-on, at 4/6, to claim another Golden Boot.

Haaland already has two of those, having found the target on at least 20 occasions across all three of his full seasons in England, with the promise of much more to come. When firing on cylinders, few can claim to match his output.

City are fully aware of his value to the collective cause, with a stunning 10-year contract being thrashed out that is due to keep Haaland at the Etihad Stadium until 2034. If said agreement is honoured, then his numbers will be truly staggering.

Alan Shearer, the Premier League’s all-time leading scorer, admits as much. He has said of potentially losing one of his entries in the history books to Haaland: “If he stays for that long, no doubt he will break that record. There were great goalscorers before I was born that have incredible records as well. My record will go one day, I’m sure of that.”

Exploits of that kind will form part of Haaland’s thinking. Given all that he has already achieved, the most ambitious of characters need to set long-term targets in order to keep their mind focused and avoid any complacency.

There appears to be no threat of that happening with Haaland, For now, he is focused on emulating one of Shearer’s achievements – rather than eclipsing him. The ex-Blackburn and Newcastle frontman finished as the Premier League’s top marksman on three occasions.

The football immortals

England captain and Tottenham legend Harry Kane is another to boast a hat-trick in that department. Haaland is chasing down a third crown of his own, hoping to match that number in the title-winning stakes, and will cement his legacy if able to do so.
With his long-term contract taken into account, there is also every reason to believe that he can join Thierry Henry and Mohamed Salah on four Golden Boots, before going on to make more history as the first man to win five top scorer gongs.
Can Haaland be stopped? It is difficult to see how anybody would set about containing his threat. He is another performer in the Messi and Ronaldo mould and may one day stand alongside them among the football immortals.