Haaland's Hat-Trick Keeps Manchester City At Premier League Summit

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Erling Haaland netted another hat-trick as Manchester City continued their flawless start to the Premier League season with a 3-1 victory over West Ham. Following his treble against Ipswich on matchday two, Haaland increased his tally to seven goals for the 2024-25 season at the London Stadium.

The Norwegian striker opened the scoring with a composed one-on-one finish before adding a powerful strike for his second goal after half an hour. This came after Ruben Dias' own goal had temporarily levelled the score for West Ham. Mohammed Kudus nearly equalised again for West Ham after the break, but Haaland secured the win with another breakaway goal seven minutes from time.

Manchester City's victory keeps them at the top of the early-season standings with nine points from three matches. In contrast, West Ham sits 14th with three points from three games under Julen Lopetegui.

Haaland has established himself as a fast starter since joining the Premier League two years ago, but this season marks his most prolific beginning yet. By this stage in both the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons, he had scored three goals. However, in 2024-25, he has already netted seven times in just three matches.

Throughout English football's top four tiers, Haaland is the first player to score hat-tricks in two of a team's first three league games in a season since Paul Jewell did so for Bradford City in 1994-95.

Historical Comparisons

Haaland now boasts eight Premier League hat-tricks for Manchester City. Only three players have more hat-tricks in the competition's history: Sergio Aguero (12), Alan Shearer (11), and Robbie Fowler (nine).

"1994 - Erling Haaland is the first player to score a hat-trick in two of a team's first three league games in a season since Paul Jewell for Bradford in 1994-95. Diamond." - OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) August 31, 2024

This remarkable achievement underscores Haaland's exceptional form and highlights his importance to Manchester City's attacking prowess this season.