The Premier League has a new apex predator - Erling Haaland.
Five games into his career in English football, the 22-year-old has nine goals already and he is only going to score more - hundreds more.
The question is how many?And after two hattricks in four days this past week, it’s anyone’s guess.
After his terrifying start, the Norwegian powerhouse is on course to smash every single league goalscoring record.
Take your pick.
Alan Shearer and Andy Cole hold the record for the most goals in a 42-game Premier League season - 34
Mo Salah has the most in the current 38-game format with 32 strikes.
Haaland will need 30 goals to equal Kevin Phillips’s record for a league debutant.
After scoring in four of five matches this term already, he needs to register in 21 more games to beat Salah’s record for most games scored in.
And with four clubs on the list of rivals he has scored against, he needs to score against another 14 to become the man to net against 18 teams in a season to beat Salah’s mark of 17.
Oh wait. It’s a long shot, but the record for most goals in an English top-flight season is 60 - by Everton legend Dixie Dean.
It might be a bit far-fetched, but I’ll come back to this.
Those are just all the records he could hunt down this season alone. But the one all the Prem pundits are talking about is Shearer’s 260-goal all-time league record.
Harry Kane wants that record with a seer hart. But even if he does get, Haaland will eventually chase it down if he stays in the league.
Talking about Haaland going on to destroy the Premier League may sound like an inevitability. But it’s not.
It’s down to what he is doing at Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City.
There were lots of big clubs in for the Norwegian, but it’s City who are bringing out his most lethal aspects.
I had my doubts that he would fit into the City game.
Haaland’s game is about pace and power, while his teammates control the game with ball possession and patience.
But rather than endlessly swapping positions with his teammates to make the opposition dronk, Haaland’s new role is all about his holding his position.
Pep is known for his tactical innovations - using Lionel Messi as a false nine at Barcelona got the Argentine ace 50 league goals in the 2011/12.
Even with Sergio Aguero, City’s all-time top goalscorer, Pep demanded his No.9 be more involved in the buildup.
With Haaland, not so much. Pep has gone old school.
After winning the Prem title without a recognised striker last term, Pep has a box predator in Haaland - he comes alive in front of the goal.
He isn’t “busy”, tricking players on the wing. No, he is always central.
Always sniffing out space and anticipating the pass, Haaland is only just discovering his killer instincts.
And like a movie monster that has just found out it’s at the top of the food chain, he is not going to score when he “needs” to, he is going to score because he “can”.
Averaging almost two goals a game, he definitely has the taste. And if he carries on like this, then even Dixie Dean’s 60 could be in his sights.
matthew.marcus@inl.co.za