Erling Haaland is putting early-season pressure on Robert Lewandowski in the Bundesliga goal charts, with the Norwegian hailed as "massively important" to Borussia Dortmund after his latest heroics.
Bayern striker Lewandowski has finished as the German top flight's leading scorer in six of the last eight seasons, including each of the last four campaigns.
In 2020-21, Lewandowski hit 41 goals to break Gerd Muller's long-standing record of 40 in a Bundesliga campaign, yet it is no foregone conclusion that he will be top of the pile this term.
Haaland is the rising force, and the 21-year-old returned from a thigh injury lay-off to score twice in Saturday's 3-1 victory over Mainz.
The double – a penalty followed by a stoppage-time clincher – took Haaland to nine goals in six Bundesliga games this season, lifting him two clear of 33-year-old Ballon d'Or contender Lewandowski.
It was the fourth time this season in the Bundesliga that Haaland has scored twice in a game, and the 17th double of his league career with Dortmund, which only began in January of last year. He also has a Bundesliga hat-trick and a four-goal game on his Dortmund resume.
In all, Haaland has 49 goals in 49 Bundesliga games for BVB, a startling return and one that has drawn attention from the likes of Real Madrid, Barcelona and Manchester City.
Marco Reus, who scored Dortmund's opener against Mainz, said: "We have obviously missed Erling in the past few games. Today, we have seen it again: he is massively important for us because he always occupies two or three players. The fact that he scored two goals on his comeback is fantastic. That's why we signed him."
Head coach Marco Rose said, quoted on the club's website: "We needed him, including for defending set-pieces. He defended well towards the end. And then he went and scored another goal in the 95th minute. That came in handy."
Whether Haaland stays at the top of the scoring chart remains to be seen. Bayern were in action against Bayer Leverkusen on Sunday, with Lewandowski looking to end what for him represented a worryingly long lean patch: two Bundesliga games without a goal.
Dortmund sat top of the table ahead of that game, and would stay there in the event of a draw. Should either team win at the BayArena, however, they would displace Rose's side from first place.
Sugar Boyz ready for crucial Nations League playoff against Cuba
The Sugar Boyz, St. Kitts and Nevis' men’s national football team is back in training as they prepare for their Concacaf Nations League Playoff clash against Cuba. After a brief rest period following their matches against the Cayman Islands and the British Virgin Islands, the team resumed training on Monday, November 4, at the National Bank Group of Companies Technical Center. Head Coach Austin “Dico” Huggins shared insights into the preparations underway as the team looks to advance toward a potential second qualification for the Concacaf Gold Cup.
“After we played against Cayman Islands and BVI, we had a brief rest period. So we're now beginning our training session from today,” Huggins explained.
Coach Huggins emphasized the significance of these playoff matches, noting the challenging task ahead. “It's going to be very hard here in training. We've got to make sure the guys are mentally prepared, physically prepared, knowing the task we have at hand. Cuba is a very good team, very professional team. So we're going to have to take them very seriously. And we are playing the first game at home, so that should be to our advantage,” he added.
He further outlined the rigorous training plan to ensure the team is ready for the intense match-up. “Our preparation will be very strenuous, very hard, very intense so that we could be better prepared for the task.”
With the first leg at home on November 14 at the NBGC Technical Center, Huggins reassured fans of an improved performance compared to their last outing against the Cayman Islands. “We're going to have a better showing, for sure. Like I said, we're playing against Cuba. The guys are up for the task,” he said.
The Sugar Boyz will then travel to Santiago de Cuba for the return leg on November 18 at the Antonio Maceo Stadium.
Kompany confident Bayern can continue prolific Bundesliga away form
Vincent Kompany is confident that his free-scoring Bayern Munich side can continue their prolific form away from home when they face St. Pauli on Saturday.
Bayern returned to winning ways in the Champions League with a 1-0 win over Benfica in midweek, but are now looking to remain at the Bundesliga summit.
Kompany's team are the only unbeaten side away from home in the league this term, taking 13 points from their five games on the road.
They have scored at least three goals in each of their last five Bundesliga away games to equal the league record set by themselves in 2019-20 under Hansi Flick.
In league history, no other side has ever scored as many goals in their first five away games of a campaign as Bayern’s current return (22).
Kompany, however, was unsure about why his team were so effective away from the Allianz Arena.
"Good question. Honestly, I don't know why that is," Kompany told a press conference.
"I don't think we differentiate too much between away games and home games. Obviously, it is extra motivation to play in our Allianz Arena.
"But we have also played a lot of matches on the road. Our plan does not change whether we play against St Pauli away or at home.
"Maybe that is the reason we have scored so much. Maybe it is the opponents changing their plans.
"We have prepared for what we have seen, and we hope it will work on the day."
Bayern's victory over Benfica came after back-to-back defeats to Aston Villa and Barcelona in the Champions League, moving them up to 17th in the new 36-team standings.
Though the scoreline suggested a closely contested affair, Kompany's side put on a dominant display that warranted a more handsome margin at full-time.
Bayern ended the contest with an expected goals (xG) total of 1.45 from their 22 shots, while restricting their opponents to just one shot.
Despite the quick turnaround from Wednesday's triumph, Kompany insisted that his players will be well-prepared for their trip to the Millerntor-Stadion.
"My players will be fresh on Saturday. I have the feeling the team is fresh mentally and physically even though we did not have a lot of time to recover," Kompany said.
Carsley yet to speak to incoming England coach Tuchel in person
England interim manager Lee Carsley has said he has not spoken to permanent head coach-to-be Thomas Tuchel in person since it was announced he would take over last month,
Carsley is scheduled to take England's Nations League games against Greece and Republic of Ireland before he returns to the Under-21s and Tuchel takes the job in January.
He said they had only exchanged text messages up to now, but was unconcerned that they were yet to see each other in the flesh.
“I think it’s quite clear in terms of the starting date,” Carsley told a press conference
“It was more of a text message to him, which was ‘congratulations’ and he said ‘good luck for the window and look forward to meeting up’.
“He is fully respectful that I am in charge at the moment, that is the priority. I do not feel hard done by or shunned.
“If anything I look forward to hopefully create a situation where we can hand over a healthy squad of players to the new coach and his squad.”
Carsley had raised eyebrows in the previous international break by struggling to give a straight answer when asked if he wanted the job permanently.
Tuchel had signed the contract two days before England were beaten by Greece at Wembley, but Carsley said that he was unaware of that at the time.
“My focus was massively on the games, on the camp. In terms of my position, I’m really comfortable with the way that it was handled," he said
“I didn’t feel undermined or anything like that. If anything I felt really well supported.
“So in terms of the Greece performance there is definitely not an excuse or that I knew something or I didn’t. In respect to the performance it was down to me.”
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