Manchester City’s Erling Haaland has picked his dream five-a-side team – and he made a bold decision regarding Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
Haaland is likely to be in many people's dream five-a-side team of current players, thanks to his impressive goal-scoring record for the Premier League champions.
The Norwegian has scored three hat-tricks this campaign, taking his tally to ten goals in seven Premier League games this term.
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The 24-year-old is one of the most prolific scorers in world football right now, but he did not choose himself when selecting his dream five-a-side team earlier this year.
There was also no space for any of his Manchester City teammates.
Speaking to the Official Man City Podcast in February 2024, Haaland picked former Real Madrid and Spain 'keeper Iker Casillas in goal instead of his current teammate Ederson.
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However, he added if Ederson was “able to shoot” he would “score 15 goals”.
In defence, Haaland went for the AC Milan and Italy legend Paolo Maldini.
"Maldini to be back there just to (defend),” Haaland added.
The forward named Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Ronaldinho in a star-studded attack. Whether this would function well is another debate, but fans would certainly tune in if this was ever made into a reality.
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Haaland is part of the nominee list for this year’s Ballon d’Or but has a long way to go until he can even think about catching Messi or Ronaldo’s number of individual prizes.
The Argentine has won the coveted prize eight times, with Ronaldo claiming it five times.
City striker Haaland has previously weighed in on the GOAT debate between Ronaldo and Messi.
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When asked if Messi had to retire in order for him to win the Ballon d'Or, Haaland replied: “I don’t know, good question.”
“Yeah, it’s true he won it and he won the World Cup so I don’t know what to say. He is the best that has ever played I think, so yeah, I don’t know,” he added.
Haaland finished second in the race for the 2023 edition of the trophy, but he did pick up the Gerd Muller Trophy given to the top striker in Europe.
This year’s nominee list was the first that has not included either Messi or Ronaldo since 2003. Haaland’s main rivals for this year’s prize are Real Madrid stars Vinicius Jr, Jude Bellingham, Dani Carvajal and Kylian Mbappe.
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Meanwhile, Inter Milan's Lautaro Martinez and Barcelona's Lamine Yamal are also in contention for the prize.
Topics: Cristiano Ronaldo, Erling Haaland, Lionel Messi, Man City, Football
Luke Alfred Davies