Tuesday’s FA Cup quarterfinals were reached by Manchester City when they defeated Luton Town 6-2 at Kenilworth Road thanks to a five-goal burst from Erling Haaland, who returned to his best.
The raiding Norwegian ended a thrilling Luton comeback before halftime with his ninth City hat trick and added two more goals after the break. Luton had no answer for him.
According to Stats Perform, Haaland is the only player to score five goals or more in an FA Cup match for a top-division team since George Best scored six goals for Manchester United against Northampton Town in 1970.
Kevin De Bruyne set up the opening four goals for the 23-year-old Haaland. According to ESPN Stats & Information research, the Belgian is only the second player for a Premier League side to assist four goals in an FA Cup match since 2004–05, having done it in 2019 with former City colleague Ilkay Gündogan.
Mateo Kovacic also scored for the reigning champion City, who have won 18 games in all competitions.
Jordan Clark’s spectacular goal just before halftime and his second goal early in the second half to make it 3-2 gave Luton hope for an unexpected comeback. However, a formidable City team rapidly discovered an additional gear to easily advance to the round of eight.
Jack Grealish’s injury, which forced him off the field in the first half, is the lone setback for City, who play Manchester United in the Premier League on Sunday.
In his previous 11 City games, Haaland had just five goals to his name. Some speculated that this was because of a foot issue that had affected his play.
But with a brilliant performance of center forward play, he decisively silenced any skeptics.
From the off, City was serious business, taking the lead in the fourth minute when Matheus Nunes found De Bruyne, who cut back a wonderful cross for Haaland to score past Tim Krul.
In the eighteenth minute, Haaland was let through by De Bruyne, making it 2-0. Haaland’s hat-trick goal was almost identical, as he again pounced on a De Bruyne ball to dink a shot over Krul.
Clark’s flawless shot past Stefan Ortega brought joy to the home crowd, and just after the break, Luton punished City for some careless defending as Clark finished beautifully.
However, a few minutes later, Haaland scored his fifth goal thanks to a ball from De Bruyne, and much to Luton’s relief, he was immediately replaced.
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