Mueez Ajao
– Erling Haaland scored his fourth Manchester City hat-trick and took his goal tally for the season to 31 in all competitions as relegation-threated Wolves were swept aside by Pep Guardiola’s men.
– By his own incredibly high standards, Haaland had been going through a barren spell.
– But after ending a three-game drought against Tottenham on Thursday, the Norwegian demolished Wolves in a 12-minute spell either side of half-time.
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– Haaland initially rose to head home Kevin de Bruyne’s cross to put the hosts ahead at the break.
– He then drove home a penalty after Ilkay Gundogan had been fouled by Wolves skipper Ruben Neves, before sweeping home his third after Jose Sa’s pass out of his six-yard box went straight to Riyad Mahrez.
– Haaland has now scored 25 goals in City’s first 20 Premier League games. That is five more than Luis Suarez managed in 2013-14, the previous highest figure at this stage in the campaign.
Haaland's hat-trick means it's now 25 goals for the season! 🔥
— Premier League (@premierleague) January 22, 2023
– The Norwegian striker’s current total would have been enough to earn him the Golden Boot in more than half of the 30 seasons since the English top-flight was renamed in 1992.
– He has also already scored as many Premier League hat-tricks as Mo Salah, and a third of Sergio Aguero’s record 12, which the Argentine achieved across his magnificent decade with City.
– Only Alan Shearer has scored more Premier League hat-tricks in a single season, with five.
FULL-TIME Man City 3-0 Wolves
Erling Haaland's hat-trick closes the gap on Arsenal to two points#MCIWOL pic.twitter.com/1ze1dpK0qP
— Premier League (@premierleague) January 22, 2023
