A UEFA Champions League goalscoring masterclass from Manchester City's Erling Haaland is set to earn the striker an incredible new item in FIFA 23.
Unless you've been living under a rock, you'll be aware that Haaland netted five, yes FIVE goals on Tuesday evening, helping Man City book their place in the UCL quarter-finals.
The 22-year-old's flurry of goals takes his tally to 39 for the 2022/23 season which is a new club record, taking him past club legend Tommy Johnson’s 38 from the 1928/29 campaign.
With EA having finally introduced European Man of the Match (MOTM) items to Ultimate Team, surely Erling Haaland is set to claim the next in FIFA 23...
Awesome Erling
Manchester City put 7-0 past RB Leipzig in the second leg of the UCL Round of 16 tie on Tuesday night - and Erling Haaland scored five of them!
Goals number 35, 36, 37, 38, and 39 for the season all arrived in a one-sided second leg to reinforce his status as the greatest goalscorer in world football right now.
The last-16 tie seemed finely poised after an opening leg in Germany which ended a goal apiece and saw both teams have periods of dominance.
However, the tie was as good as over by half-time of the second leg, with the Blues leading 4-1 on aggregate after a Haaland hat-trick.
Haaland would go on to score twice more after the break, with Ilkay Gundogan and Kevin De Bruyne also getting in on the act.
It's worth remembering that Erling Haaland is astonishingly still only 22 years of age.
The Norway international striker's mid-week goals take him to five hattricks for the season - a simply outrageous stat.
MOTM Haaland (Predicted OVR 90)
Erling Haaland's Champions League performance will surely see him rewarded with his fourth special item of FUT 23.
This will most likely come in the form of a UCL Man of the Match card.
We expect EA to hand the goalscoring machine a 90 OVR MOTM card in Ultimate Team.
Haaland's MOTM item could boast 93 Shooting, 92 Pace, 90 Physicality and 84 Dribbling.
Unfortunately, the forward only possesses three-star skill moves and a three-star weak foot, but this won't stop him from being incredibly overpowered in-game.
The City number nine's MOTM item could bear a close resemblance to that of his 90-rated Ones to Watch (OTW) card.
For reference, Haaland's OTW item currently sells for roughly 680,000 coins on the PlayStation and Xbox transfer market.
Of course, with the potential for further upgrades, Erling Haaland's OTW card will naturally fall at a higher price, but his MOTM card could still sell for over 450,000 coins, given its rarity.
Record breaker
Erling Haaland didn't just break one record, though, he actually broke five in a single match.
The following records were set by the striker on Tuesday night:
- Joint most goals in a single UEFA Champions League game.
- Most goals for Manchester City in a single season.
- The fastest player in the history of the competition to reach 30 UEFA Champions League goals.
- The youngest player in UEFA Champions League history to score 30 goals.
- Fifth Manchester City hat-trick this season.
So, could EA go one step further and hand Haaland the first Record Breaker item of FIFA 23?
Haaland's Record Breaker item could land via the SBC menus or as a mini-release along with the rumoured Kylian Mbappe card after he cemented his place in Paris Saint-Germain history as the club's all-time record goalscorer.
The Manchester City forward could be set for a 92 OVR Record Breaker card with 95 Shooting, 93 Pace ad 91 Physicality.