Erling Haaland hits five in City's 7-0 rout of RB Leipzig

Erling Haaland hits five in City's 7-0 rout of RB Leipzig as Manchester City reach Champions League Quarterfinals

Erling Haaland equals Lionel Messi's knockout goals in a single game after scoring five times against Leipzig in City's 7-0 round of 16 second leg win. City advanced 8-1 on aggregate. (Photo credit: GOAL)

Champions League football is not for kids; it’s the reason everyone fights to get into it, but how do you explain going into a game to fight for a chance in the quarterfinals and then shipping seven goals with Erling Haaland scoring five?

We’ll talk about the legend of the Norwegian Vikings soon, but let’s ask Leipzig.

How did you concede seven goals on a frenzy Champions League night, right in front of your traveling fans and the neutrals who wanted a strong team defeated?

There were a couple of dodgy calls in the first half, including the penalty awarded to the hosts for Erling Haaland’s first goal, but Leipzig probably threw in the towel at halftime and didn’t bother anymore to put efforts into defending.

Haaland completed his first half hat trick after an effort from Ruben Dias rolled fortuitously to the Norwegian, and he obliged.

He scored two more in the second half to equal Lionel Messi and Luiz Adriano’s record of five goals in a Champions League game and is now City’s top scorer in a single season, and he still has at least 14 games to play.

"It's a big night. Firstly, I'm proud to play in this competition; I love it. Five goals. To win 7-0 is amazing," Erling Haaland said.

"My super strength is scoring goals. Should I be honest? A lot of goals today, I didn't think. I was just trying to get it into the back of the net," he added. "A lot of it is being quick in the mind and trying to put it where the goalkeeper is not."

The Cityzens can build on the sensational result against Leipzig to go all the way in the Champions League.

And also rejuvenate their indifferent season in the league, where they have found it hard to go five games without dropping points.

They’re also in FA Cup action next weekend as they challenge on three fronts.