- English Premier League defenders have yet to find a way to stop Erling Haaland scoring goals.
- Some soccer fans, however, think they've found the answer – ban him from playing completely.
English Premier League defenders have yet to find a way to stop Erling Haaland from scoring goals.
Some soccer fans, however, think they've found the answer – ban him from playing altogether.
Haaland has scored 14 goals in just eight EPL matches for Manchester City this season, including three consecutive hat tricks at the Etihad Stadium.
He's also scored five goals in three Champions League matches.
In response to his blistering form, several petitions have started online to prohibit him from terrorizing opponents.
One petition is titled: "Get Erling Haaland banned from Association Football because it's just not fair."
Its summary reads: "It's just simply not fair. We can make a change. Now is the time for us people to act. This robot should not be allowed to carry on in our country."
Another petition, started by Shane Lee, is titled: "Remove Erling Haaland from the UK."
"Erling Haaland is a serious problem," reads its blurb. "He shows up out of the blue and consistently ruins the weekends of the hardworking people of this great nation. This issue must be dealt with in order to protect the mental health of millions in our society.
"To put it shortly, if things don't change, it will only get worse. This guy is nine league goals away from equaling last season's golden boot winner. This is disrespectful to the establishment."
Even Haaland's former teammates are bored of him scoring goals.
Borussia Dortmund midfielder Jude Bellingham, who played alongside Haaland in Germany last year, scored for the third straight Champions League game on Wednesday when he netted Dortmund's second in its 4-1 win over Sevilla.
With the goal, the 19-year-old became only the second teenager in history to score in the first three Champions League games of a campaign.
Haaland, who achieved the feat while playing for RB Salzburg, is the only other player to have done so.
"Of course. I can't get anything over that geezer at the minute, I swear to God," Bellingham said when told it was only Haaland who'd ever done what he had before.
"It sums him up."