[ad_1]
Four-goal scorer Erling Haaland softly criticized Borussia Dortmund manager Lucien Favre for missing his goal count after an impressive 5-2 win over Hertha Berlin.
The newly named Golden Boy winner had a sensational second half on Sunday at the Olympiastadion in Berlin, but said he could have scored more if he had stayed on the field.
– Broadcast Bundesliga matches live on ESPN + in the US.
“Sincerely, [Favre] He asked me how many I wrote down. He asked me if I had scored three and I said, ‘No, four. Just four because you replaced me, ‘”Haaland told ESPN afterward.
“So I’m a little mad at him right now, but he is,” added a grinning Haaland.
Favre admitted that he lost count of his star forward’s account, but was happy with the end result.
“It’s true. I don’t just watch the goals, I also watch the passes,” Favre told ESPN. “I know he can score goals. He did a good job. He’s happy and the team is happy.”
Haaland’s performance stole the spotlight from the long-awaited debut of 16-year-old prodigy Youssoufa Moukoko, who became the youngest player in history in a Bundesliga match.
By making his first appearance the day after his birthday, Moukoko’s mark can be hard to match given the league’s age only dropped to 16 earlier this year.
“He’s the greatest talent in the world right now,” Haaland said. “16 years and one day. That’s pretty amazing. He has a great career ahead of him. I’m in my 20s, I’m getting old now. That’s how it is.”
Earlier on Saturday, Haaland was named the Golden Boy when he beat Ansu Fati of Barcelona and Alphonso Davies of Bayern Munich in the award honoring the best young player in Europe for the calendar year.
“It’s been a good day. I’m smiling a little bit now,” Haaland said.
Dortmund trailed 1-0 at halftime, but a hat trick from Haaland in the first 20 minutes of the second half, a goal from Raphael Guerreiro and another from Haaland sealed the victory.
The victory moved Dortmund within a point of league leader Bayern Munich.
Since arriving at Dortmund from RB Salzburg in January, he has scored 31 goals in 30 appearances in all competitions. He is also behind Bayern star and three-time Torjägerkrone winner Robert Lewandowski by a goal in the race for the top scorer this season.
“He has the ability to score more goals than Lewandowski,” BVB midfielder Axel Witsel told ESPN. “It’s not easy. Lewandowski is one of the best strikers in the world, but I think Erling has the quality to do it. But he has to score almost every game.”
