In the 56th minute at the Etihad Stadium, Haaland's header not only opened the scoring for Man City but also etched his name in history as the fastest player to 50 Champions League goals. The 25-year-old achieved this feat in just 49 matches, eclipsing the previous record of 62 matches held by former Man Utd striker, Van Nistelrooy.

Trailing Haaland and Van Nistelrooy in this impressive ranking are Lionel Messi (66 matches), Robert Lewandowski (77), Kylian Mbappe (79), Karim Benzema (88), Cristiano Ronaldo (91), Raul Gonzalez (97), Thierry Henry (103), and Thomas Muller (130).

Haaland (right) celebrates his opening goal in Man City's 2-0 Champions League group stage victory over Napoli on 18/9. Photo: AFP

Haaland (right) celebrates his opening goal in Man City's 2-0 Champions League group stage victory over Napoli on 18/9. Photo: AFP

In terms of total Champions League goals, Cristiano Ronaldo still leads with 140. Following closely behind are Lionel Messi (129), Robert Lewandowski (105), Karim Benzema (90), Raul Gonzalez (71), Kylian Mbappe (57), Thomas Muller (57), Van Nistelrooy (56), Thierry Henry (50), Haaland (50), and Zlatan Ibrahimovic (48).

Haaland's Champions League goal-scoring journey began with RB Salzburg in the 2019-2020 season, where he netted eight goals in six matches. He then scored 15 goals in 13 matches for Dortmund and has already amassed 27 goals in 30 matches for Man City.

Since mid-August, Haaland has been in phenomenal form, scoring six goals in six matches for Man City and another six in two matches for the Norway national team. This prolific streak reminds many fans of his outstanding 2022-2023 season, where he scored 52 goals in 53 matches, propelling Man City to a historic treble.

During the match on 18/9, Napoli's Di Lorenzo received a straight red card in the 21st minute for a foul on Haaland. Despite being a man down, Napoli mounted a resilient defense, keeping a clean sheet for the first 11 minutes of the second half. Man City finally broke the deadlock thanks to Haaland's diving header from Phil Foden's short cross. Jeremy Doku sealed the 2-0 victory with a diagonal shot in the 65th minute.

"The first half was a bit difficult. I couldn't get on the ball much between the lines, but Erling always makes those great runs. The connection is key. He seems to break every record, and what he's doing is unprecedented. He's an incredible player," Foden commented.

The victory over Napoli gives Man City a stronger start to their Champions League campaign compared to last season, where they drew 0-0 with Inter at home. Their next seven opponents are Monaco, Villarreal, Dortmund, Leverkusen, Real Madrid, Bodo/Glimt, and Galatasaray.

Thanh Quy (according to Marca)