Manchester City thumped RB Leipzig in their round of 16 second-leg game in the UEFA Champions League. They scored seven against the Bundesliga team and won the two-legged tie with an 8-1 aggregate score. City rode on the five goals of star striker Erling Haaland, who broke some long-held records while scoring those goals. One of the records saw him level that of the legendary Argentine star Lionel Messi.

Messi was the first player to score a first-half hatrick in a knockout game of the Champions League. He achieved the feat against Premier League giants Arsenal in 2010. The Argentine scored in the 21st, 37th, and 42nd minutes of the game. Haaland achieved the feat last night when he scored in the 22nd, 24th, and the second minute of added time in the first half. 

Fans react to Haaland equaling the record of Lionel Messi

Fans on social media were quick to praise the Norwegian for achieving the feat that put him alongside Messi. The 22-year-old was at his rampant best and was breaking records for fun at the age of 22. Fans didn’t stop themselves from bringing Cristiano Ronaldo into the discussion. One fan wrote, “Ronaldo could never.” Another fan said Mr. Champions League is missing from here as Ronaldo has never achieved this feat.

A few fans pointed out that Haaland has already scored more hattricks than legendary forwards like Thierry Henry, Ronaldo Nazario, and Wayne Rooney in the Champions League. Many fans pointed out that when Messi and Haaland achieved the feat, Pep Guardiola was the manager on both occasions.

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However, some fans slammed ESPN for forgetting current FC Barcelona forward Robert Lewandowski. Lewandowski achieved the feat last season when he was playing for Bayern Munich when he scored a first-half hattrick against RB Salzburg.

Haaland becomes the third player to score five goals in a Champions League game

Haaland became the third player in the UEFA Champions League history to score five goals in a game. Lionel Messi and Luiz Adriano achieved the feat before the Norwegian. Messi scored five goals against Bayer Leverkusen on March 8, 2012, whereas Adriano scored five goals against BATE Borisov on October 21, 2014.

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Haaland also became the second player behind Lionel Messi to score five goals in the knockout phase of the Champions League. Now, the Norwegian has 31 goals in the tournament and is the fastest to achieve the 30 goal mark, breaking Kylian Mbappe’s record. Only time will tell where Haaland ends up in the number of goals scored in the Champions League. 

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