Man City striker Erling Haaland told what he must do to reach Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo levels as ex-Barcelona star Gerard Pique makes ‘long way to go’ claim

The prolific Norwegian has made a positive start down that path, with 52 goals recorded in his debut season at the Etihad Stadium. Those efforts, which came on the back of a similarly productive spell at Borussia Dortmund, helped City to a historic Premier League, Champions League and FA Cup treble.

Haaland has been held back slightly by injury issues this season but still has another 29 efforts to his name. He has been pipped to Ballon d’Or and FIFA Best honours by all-time great Messi, but is expected to land such prizes at some stage in the near future.

Whether he sparks his own GOAT debate remains to be seen, with World Cup winner Pique – who played alongside Messi and Ronaldo at Barcelona and Manchester United respectively – telling talkSPORT of Haaland’s quest to rub shoulders with the very best: “I think he has a lot of potential but to arrive at the level of Messi and Cristiano, it’s a long way to go. He has to win so many titles, he has to do this for 15, 17, 20 years and this is not easy also. He’s very young, very promising and he has a lot of potential but still I think he’s far away from those two.”

City remain in contention to defend all three of the trophies that they won in 2023, with Haaland integral to Pep Guardiola’s plans heading forward. Fitness concerns remain, though, and the talented 23-year-old will need to be managed carefully from this point.