It had been a relatively lean spell for Erling Haaland. That was before his record-equaling five goals in a Champions League game when Manchester City routed Leipzig 7-0, reports AP.

Haaland had only scored three goals in his previous nine appearances — by far his worst run of the season — but is now up to 39 in 35 competitive games since joining City last year.

That number might have been higher if not for Pep Guardiola’s decision to substitute him shortly after the hour mark against Leipzig, with a place in the quarterfinals essentially secured.

In doing so, the City manager denied Haaland the chance to set a scoring record in European club soccer’s elite competition and surpass even the great Lionel Messi as the only player to get six goals in one match. Luiz Adriano also scored five.

“If he achieves this milestone at 22, 23, it will be boring his life,” Guardiola joked afterward. “He wouldn’t have a target to reach in the future.”

At this rate, it seems to be only a matter of time before the next record tumbles.

On Tuesday, Haaland became the fastest player to reach 30 Champions League goals, beating the record held by former Manchester United striker Ruud van Nistelrooy.

Source: Bahrain News Agency (BNA)