Haaland tipped to surpass Ronaldo and Messi legacies by Premier League legend

Jamie Carragher believes Erling Haaland could become the greatest goalscorer in football history after the Manchester City striker continued his remarkable scoring run with a brace against Porto in the Champions League.

The Norwegian’s double secured City a 2-0 victory in Portugal and took his career tally to 364 goals in 424 matches, putting him ahead of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo at the same age.

Speaking on CBS Sports, Carragher was remarkably confident about Haaland’s chances of reaching a milestone that has eluded generations of elite forwards.

“I just can't see Haaland not scoring 1,000 goals or being the best goalscorer of all time... it just feels like a normal night.”

Haaland’s numbers already compare favourably with two of the greatest goalscorers football has produced. At the same age, Messi had scored 348 goals while Ronaldo had managed 219.

The 25-year-old therefore has plenty of time to continue closing the gap on the pair, who are now approaching the end of their careers while pursuing the 1,000-goal mark themselves. Ronaldo currently has 979 career goals, while Messi sits on 929.

Former Arsenal star Paul Merson was more cautious about predicting whether Haaland can eventually reach four figures, pointing to the challenges that come with ageing.

“The older you get, the lesser team you're going to play for... but if he's going to stay at Man City for the next seven, eight years, then who knows? He could do it.”

Haaland himself appeared to believe he could have added even more against Porto after his two-goal performance, saying, “I could have easily had a few more goals.”

He now needs only one more Champions League goal to overtake Sergio Aguero as Manchester City’s all-time leading scorer in the competition, having already reached 35.

With his extraordinary scoring rate showing little sign of slowing down, Haaland is giving himself a genuine chance to challenge records that once appeared firmly associated with Messi and Ronaldo.