Erling Haaland scored both of Manchester City’s goals in a 2-0 victory over Porto on matchday one of their Champions League campaign.
The brace took Haaland’s total tally in the competition to 59 goals, drawing level with Andriy Shevchenko in the all-time scoring charts.
At just 26 years old, matching Shevchenko’s landmark is remarkable company to keep, but Haaland’s sights are firmly set on even bigger targets.
He now needs just one more goal to chase down two Champions League records currently held by Lionel Messi, the competition’s most decorated individual performer.
Messi holds the records for reaching 60 Champions League goals at the youngest age and in the fewest appearances, two milestones Haaland is rapidly threatening.
The Argentine was 26 years and 86 days old when he scored his 60th Champions League goal, achieving the feat in his 80th appearance in the competition.
Haaland is currently 26 years and 50 days old, meaning City’s next Champions League fixture presents a narrow but genuine opportunity to break the age record.
Manchester City face PSG on October 14, at which point Haaland will be 26 years and 85 days old, one day younger than Messi was when he reached the same landmark.
Scoring against PSG will be a stiffer challenge than dispatching Porto, but Haaland’s record in the competition makes it unwise to bet against him.
Even if the age record slips away, Haaland remains firmly on course to shatter Messi’s other milestone by a significant margin.
Haaland has scored his 59 Champions League goals across just 59 appearances, whereas Messi required 80 games to reach the same total.
That remarkable efficiency means Haaland has up to 21 further games to match or beat the record, potentially stretching the opportunity into next season if needed.
Those who have watched his relentless progression, however, would be surprised if it took anything close to that long for the record to fall.
Haaland already holds the records for the fewest games needed to reach 10, 20, 30, 40, and 50 Champions League goals, making 60 feel like an inevitable next step.
His first eight Champions League goals came with Red Bull Salzburg, followed by 15 for Borussia Dortmund, before City became the club where his European scoring truly exploded.
The only question now surrounding Haaland and Messi’s records is not whether they will fall, but precisely how quickly and by how wide a margin.