Ireland Under-21 ace Conor Coventry has described Norway and Manchester City powerhouse Erling Haaland as an “incredible” footballer.
Haaland is heading to the Aviva Stadium in November with his international teammates for a friendly against the senior Ireland side.
And Stephen Kenny’s defenders will have to be lightning fast to keep the 22-year-old goalscoring sensation at bay, according to Coventry.
He made his Premier League debut last month against City - and the midfielder gave an insight into the former Borussia Dortmund man.
Haaland scored two of his 14 goals so far this season in a 2-0 win over the Hammers.
Coventry said: “As you can see, physically he’s incredible.
“The pace he moves at for someone of that size, his intelligence of his runs, his finishes, obviously he’s a top player, he’s going to be one of the top players for the next 15 years.
“The second goal (against West Ham), the pace he got and the finish, everyone watching is excited by him and it’s interesting to have him in the Premier League.”
Coventry could find himself in contention for the November friendly double-header against Norway and Malta if he continues to progress at West Ham.
He has made one start and three substitute appearances so far this term under David Moyes.
But his immediate focus is on the Irish Under-21s and their bid for a first ever European Championships qualification.
Coventry will skipper Ireland in Friday night’s first-leg against Israel at Tallaght Stadium (7pm), with the second-leg taking place in Tel Aviv next Tuesday.
“Very excited,” he replied, when asked how he was feeling about the two games.
“We knew at the start of the group it was either win the group or go through a play-off and we would have taken it at the start of the group.
“It’s somewhere we wanted to be and everyone is really excited, and we’ve put a lot of work into it and now we get the chance to achieve what we want to achieve.”
Coventry, Ireland’s record caps holder at Under-21 level, hopes to extend his time at this level until next summer by qualifying for the finals.
“I’d rather be away with Ireland than on holiday, that’s the truth really,” he said.
“It’s a journey that I loved and every camp I’ve come on I’ve enjoyed. We’ve played some really good football and achieved some really great things together.
“I’m really proud of it. It could be the last one, so I’m trying extra hard to make sure it is not.”
READ NEXT:
Ronan O'Gara slapped with six-week sideline ban by French rugby bosses
Steve Clarke sends Republic of Ireland message after Scotland thrash Ukraine
From crazy Irish Open debut to headline attraction - Leona Maguire has come a long way
Katie Taylor fans all saying the same thing after fight announcement
Matt Doherty hoping Stephen Kenny follows Antonio Conte's instruction to get games
Get the latest sports headlines straight to your inbox by signing up for free email alerts
