Wayne Rooney, former Manchester United player believes that Manchester City goal machine Erling Haaland must win the 2023 Ballon d’Or due to his impressive performances.
Wayne Rooney, the 37-year-old England International has tipped the Norwegian striker to win the Ballon d’Or this year putting an end to Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi’s era.
Over the past fifteen years, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have dominated the world of football, winning a combined twelve Ballon d’Or awards.
Wayne Rooney, a former striker for Manchester United, has predicted that the period of dominance between the two GOATs is coming to an end.
The former England striker thinks Manchester City’s Erling Haaland is the best player in the world right now because of his stellar play for the Citizens.
Erling Haaland has adapted to the English Premier League better than anyone predicted him to after joining Pep Guardiola’s squad from Borussia Dortmund last summer. Since then, the former RB Salzburg striker has seen the back of the net 48 times in 42 appearances.
His latest goal came at the home of his old foe Bayern Munich on Wednesday night, April 19, 2023 as City drew 1-1 on the night to progress to the Champions League semi-finals 4-1 on aggregate.
With his goal-scoring prowess currently unmatched in the world of football, Wayne Rooney acknowledges that the 22-year-old striker should win the prestigious Ballon d’Or this year.
Wayne Rooney was quoted as saying; “Erling Haaland is the best footballer in the world right now, Lionel Messi is the greatest but, at this moment, nobody is playing better than a striker who even though I broke records in that position myself takes my breath away with the level he’s reaching”.
He added; ” He’s the best player in the world because of the numbers he’s posting, the performances he shows. If you’re looking at who is going to win the Ballon d’Or then it has got to be him, provided he keeps up his form for the rest of the season”.
Erling Haaland, a star for Manchester City, has scored at an alarming rate recently, and his goals-per-game ratio is currently higher than that of both Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
With his twelfth goal in the UEFA Champions League, he has now scored 35 goals in 27 games. At his current pace, the Norwegian would become the first player in Champions League history to score over 30 goals and average more than one goal per game.
On Saturday, as the Citizens advanced to the FA Cup final, Haaland was noticeably silent. Instead, Riyad Mahrez stole the show by scoring a hat trick in a 3-0 win over Sheffield United.
What’s next for Erling Haaland and Manchester City?
The 22-year-old goal machine will be in action for the Citizens on Wednesday, 26th of April, 2023, when City lock horns with Premier League leaders Arsenal at the Etihad Stadium as Pep Guardiola’s men will look forward to securing a victory over Mikel Arteta’s boys.
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