Erling Haaland inspired by Kylian Mbappe in quest for continued improvement

Erling Haaland has used the example of Kylian Mbappe to show he still has significant room for improvement despite a superb start to life at Borussia Dortmund.

Following a January move from Red Bull Salzburg, Haaland scored eight goals in his first four appearances for Dortmund, despite starting his opening two games on the bench - exploits that saw him named Bundesliga player of the month for January on Friday.

The teenager has understandably drawn high praise for his initial impact in Germany's top flight, which followed a series of eye-catching displays in the Champions League as he contributed eight goals in six outings for Salzburg.

However, Haaland believes he still has much work to do and the Norwegian highlighted Paris Saint-Germain star Kylian Mbappe - a World Cup winner with France at the age of 19 - as someone he has yet to reach the level of.

"I always said to myself that my dream is to become one of the best players in the world," Haaland said in an interview with the Bundesliga's official website.

"I knew when I was young that I was good, but you know, it's also a long way to go. When I got my first professional contract in Bryne, I was thinking 'this is a good thing'. But on the other side, it's nothing compared to others.

"Also, when I was in Salzburg, I started scoring goals there, but if I'm realistic, I look at Kylian Mbappe, he's scoring, he's banging in goals in Ligue 1, so you know, you can always reach a higher level in football."

 

February 14, 2020

For the time being, the 19-year-old believes he still has work to do to emulate the feats of his father, Alf-Inge Haaland, a defender and midfielder who represented the likes of Manchester City and Leeds United as well as earning regular caps for his country.

Asked if he had already enjoyed a better career than his dad, Erling Haaland replied: "No, not yet. He has 34 games for Norway, and I think over 200 games in the Premier League in England, so I'm still missing a bit."