Erling Haaland reached another absurd milestone on Saturday as he became the fastest player to score 100 Premier League goals, yet Manchester City were pushed to the brink in a chaotic 5-4 win over Fulham at Craven Cottage.
The Norwegian thundered Jeremy Doku’s cross past Bernd Leno after 17 minutes, marking his century in just his 111th league appearance. Any other day it would have been the headline moment, but Fulham refused to play the role of polite hosts and turned the second half into a nerve-shredding spectacle.
City looked comfortable early on. Haaland turned provider for Tijjani Reijnders, who clipped the ball over Leno for his first top flight goal since August. Phil Foden then curved a beautiful strike into the top corner before Emile Smith Rowe reduced the deficit with an improvised header in stoppage time.
Pep Guardiola’s side restored control after the break when Haaland’s clever flick set Foden up for his second. Minutes later, Sander Berge diverted Doku’s shot into his own net, apparently killing off the contest.
Instead, Fulham came roaring back. Alex Iwobi’s curling strike reignited belief before Samuel Chukwueze, introduced at half time, produced two clinical finishes within six minutes to leave City reeling and Craven Cottage bouncing.
The champions were forced into survival mode for a nervous finale. Eight minutes of stoppage time felt like a lifetime and it required a desperate clearance from Josko Gvardiol to deny Josh King deep into the added minutes.
Haaland’s landmark is another cold statistic that reinforces how freakishly efficient he is, but City left west London knowing their defending nearly drowned the moment in embarrassment. They closed the gap on leaders Arsenal, yet the late collapse made this victory feel more like a warning than a celebration.
