Erling Haaland was back at his ruthless best as Norway racked up a huge World Cup qualifying win over Moldova on Tuesday.
Haaland bagged five goals as Ståle Solbakken’s side hammered the Eastern European minnows 11-1.
It’s a result that bolsters the Manchester City star’s hopes of playing at his first major international tournament in North America next summer, with Norway top of UEFA Group I on the back of five wins out of five.
Hat-tricks have become a key part of Haaland’s record-breaking story and Moldova are unlikely to be the last team to suffer so heavily at his expense.
What is the most goals Erling Haaland has scored in a match?
The five-goal haul against Moldova only equalled Haaland’s best effort over 90 minutes.
In 2022/23, he scored five in a 7-0 demolition of RB Leipzig in the UEFA Champions League last 16. A year later, he did likewise as City beat Luton Town 6-2 in the FA Cup.
Although he has never gone beyond five in senior football, Haaland famously scored nine times in the same game for Norway against Honduras at the FIFA U-20 World Cup in 2019.
¡Los 9⃣ del 9⃣! 🇳🇴🔥
¡Hace exactamente cuatro años Erling Haaland anotaba 𝗡𝗨𝗘𝗩𝗘 𝗚𝗢𝗟𝗘𝗦 en un solo partido de #U20WC! 😱⚽ pic.twitter.com/sHWUsUnu5W
— Copa Mundial FIFA 🏆 (@fifaworldcup_es) May 30, 2023
How many hat-tricks has Haaland scored?
Overall for club and country, Haaland has scored 26 senior hat-tricks as of September 9, 2025.
The bulk of those have come for Manchester City. He has claimed 11 matchballs for the 10-time English champions, although a year had passed since his most recent City treble by the time he plundered five against Moldova.
That was Haaland’s fifth international hat-trick for Norway, the same amount that he netted in just 10 months with RB Salzburg.
Haaland’s exploits in Austria paved the way for a move to Borussia Dortmund, for whom he scored four hat-tricks.
The teenage Haaland scored his first hat-trick for Molde in June 2017.
Erling Haaland: Every hat-trick
W 6-3