Author of a monstrous season with Manchester City, Erling Haaland is one of Lionel Messi’s rivals for the 2023 Ballon d’Or, but admirers of “La Pulga” do not miss the opportunity to denigrate the Norwegian striker.
Captain of Argentina, world champion 2022, on December 18, Lionel Messi is the heavy favorite to win the 2023 Ballon d’Or, which is expected to be given next October in Paris. But, while the prestigious award of France Soccer now crowns the best player of the season, Erling Haaland is clearly the other favorite to succeed Karim Benzema.
The Norwegian cyborg has 52 goals in 52 appearances in all competitions this season for Manchester City and Pep Guardiola’s side are on their way to an extraordinary treble. After winning the Premier League and then the FA Cup on Saturday against United (2-1)the Cityzens are preparing for the Champions League final against Inter Milan next Saturday in Istanbul.
Haaland’s zero point
But the pro-Messi did not fail to notice that Haaland had not scored in the FA Cup final at Wembley, as he had not converted his chances during the double confrontation against Real Madrid in the UCL semi-finals. The overpowered 22-year-old left-hander has had a lack of success in recent weeks: he has only scored once in the last 8 matches.
We also learn that Haaland has not been decisive in his 5 matches in the semi-finals or final of a competition this season, while Messi has 4 goals and an assist in 3 matches. A very eccentric statistic when the total of the Ballon d’Or record holder (7) takes into account the last four of the World Cup in Qatar and his goal during the PSG Champions Trophy against FC Nantes.
