Erling Haaland has admitted that he didn't celebrate his two goals against Leeds United because he has "respect" for the club after being born in the city.
The Manchester City forward struck his 19th and 20th Premier League goals of the season as Pep Guardiola's side ran out 3-1 winners at Elland Road. Rodri also found the net for City, who closed the gap on leaders Arsenal to five points at the top of the table heading into their New Year's Eve clash with Everton.
But, unsurprisingly, it was Haaland who stole the show yet again with two excellent finishes to continue his impressive start to the campaign. His first was a simple tap-in after Jack Grealish pinched the ball off Robin Koch, before running through on goal and squaring across to Haaland to stroke home.
Grealish was also the provider for Haaland's second as the Norwegian played a one-two with the ex-Aston Villa man before coolly slotting into the corner with his weaker right foot. However, Haaland chose to do a muted celebration for both goals after he was born in Leeds back in 2000.
He told VG: "It was planned. I did not feel like celebrating. I was born in Leeds and have respect for the club.
He continued: "I of course celebrated with Jack Grealish and said 'Great work!' because it was two fantastic assists. Mum and dad were at the stadium. That is special. When I was little I had a Leeds kit with Eirik Bakke on the back and a City kit with my dad's name."
Was Erling Haaland right not to celebrate both of his goals against Leeds? Let us know in the comments below!
Erling's father, Alfie, played for the Whites when his son was born 22 years ago. But he was just a matter of months old when Alfie chose to move to City, where the family connection now lies. The 50-year-old was a cult hero at the club before breaking his leg following a horrendous challenge from Roy Keane.
Alfie was forced to retire from the top level after the incident despite playing some matches in the fourth tier of Norwegian football with Rosseland. Despite being born in England, however, Erling chose to play for Norway at international level and he has since grabbed 21 goals in 23 matches for his nation.
Haaland's record at club level is as phenomenal and teammate Kevin de Bruyne reckons the forward can reach astronomical numbers if he carries on his scoring rate throughout his career.
"It's very hard to compare strikers because they are all totally different," said De Bruyne. "They play in the same position, but some are physical players, some are speed demons and they can all score goals for fun.
"Erling hasn’t because of his age, but they have all scored 300 or 400 goals. Erling is so obsessed with goals, he can maybe go beyond that. He already has about 200 goals, so he can probably go to 600, 700 or 800 if he stays fit and does the things that he does."
