Erling Haaland has the football world at his feet

On Saturday, Borussia Dortmund host Union Berlin at the Signal Iduna Park, and there will be a real temptation for manager Lucien Favre to hand teenage sensation, Erling Haaland, his first start for the club. With an incredible return of five goals in just 59 minutes of Bundesliga football for his new club to date, Haaland is a natural fit for the attacking style of football that Favre is credited with.

But while Haaland’s stats for Dortmund are startling, they are not surprising. His form for Molde FK and Red Bull Salzburg made him one of the hottest prospects in the European game, while his eight goals in five consecutive UEFA Champions League games placed him alongside the likes of Neymar, Robert Lewandowski and Cristiano Ronaldo in Europe’s premier competition.

Surprise switch

There was a natural assumption that Manchester United would be his next destination as Red Bull Salzburg accepted that their prodigy was set to move on. Haaland played under Ole Gunnar Solskjær at Molde FK, and would have appreciated the guidance offered to him by the former striker in the same way that Marcus Rashford has benefited from his goalscoring experience. However, the lure of Bundesliga prompted Haaland to make the short journey from Austria to Germany for the next chapter of his career.

Haaland has scored five goals in less than one hour of football in the Bundesliga

Haaland has been spoken about for several years in his native Norway, and he has represented his country at every level from the U15’s to the senior team. There is already little doubt that he will be a pivotal player for Norway over the course of the next decade at the very least, and the potential in the towering teenager who already has such a refined eye for goal makes him one of the most exciting young talents in the modern game.

Parental guidance

Coming from a professional football background, he will no doubt benefit from the experience of his father, Alf-Inge Haaland, as he learns to adapt to the international spotlight that is goal return has already attracted. Mistakes will follow, and there will be natural dips in form and confidence as he matures both personally and professionally. The biggest challenge for Favre and his coaching staff at Dortmund in the short-term may be keeping the feet of the giant striker grounded as he embraces his new-found fame.

Few stadiums can match the atmosphere created at the Westfalenstadion

It was certainly an impressive coup for Borussia Dortmund to secure the services of such a prodigious talent, but it is easy to understand the attraction of playing for the famous Yellow Wall at their impressive home. Few stadiums can create the same atmosphere as that generated by over 80,000 passionate fans at the Westfalenstadion. They have a new hero in Haaland, and while his talent and potential is likely to make his time at the club relatively short, it is a key move at a crucial stage in his career that will ensure a mutual place in each other's hearts.

The other teen sensations

There have been natural comparisons to Haaland and fellow Norwegian teenage prodigy Martin Ødegaard. At the age of just 15, Ødegaard was representing his country at senior level, and engineered himself a move to Spanish giants Real Madrid in the process. It was a high-profile switch, and many questioned the benefit of the move and how the media circus that followed him around would negatively affect his career, before it had even started.

It was appropriate to take Ødegaard out of the cauldron of the Santiago Bernabéu, and his career progressed through his teenage years with loan spells at Heerenveen and SBV Vitesse in the Netherlands. This season, he returned to Spain with Real Sociedad, and the maturity in his performances and his character has earned him impressive reviews. Both Ødegaard and Haaland offer every hope that Norway can soon enjoy another purple patch on the international stage.

Martin Ødegaard has been in excellent form for Real Sociedad this season

Haaland was expected to follow a similar path to his international team-mate, but he has instead opted for a journey successfully travelled by another teenage sensation. Jadon Sancho made the brave decision to swap the comforts of Manchester City for the Bundesliga back in 2017, and his performances for Borussia Dortmund have made him an important part of Gareth Southgate’s England squad. Comparing his development to that of Phil Foden as the midfielder's struggle for regular game time at Manchester City suggests that Sancho’s bravery has been rewarded.

Impressing for Dortmund has played a key part in the international development of Sancho with England

The failure of Manchester United to claim the signature of Haaland is a criticism of the club and reflective of their current demise. However, the striker is a self-confessed Leeds United fan, and his loyalties would have been put to the test wearing the shirt of their bitter rivals. While this was not the deciding factor in the process that took him to Dortmund, it is clear that Haaland will have plenty of opportunities in the future to showcase his prodigious talent at any destination of his choice.

Manager Lucien Favre is excited by what Haaland can bring to his team

For the moment, the focus for Haaland is very much on the immediate fortunes of Borussia Dortmund as they continue to challenge at the top of a very open Bundesliga table. His five goals in two substitute appearances suggest he will have a say in where his club finish at the end of the current campaign, and his stock will continue to rise as club success follows. His transfer value continues to grow, and the big clubs will again inevitably circle for his signature during the summer months.

The power broker

Of course, there is also the elephant in room to consider when assessing Haaland’s future, and that is the influence of powerful super-agent Mino Raiola. A well-planned career path can ensure the best possible progress for the player, while multiple transfers will bring multiple slices of the financial cake for the man who has engineered some of the highest-profile moves in the history of the game. If it works for Haaland, it works for Raiola, and the mutual benefits will bring maximum reward for both parties.

Agent Mino Raiola will play a big part in the future of Haaland

The development and progression of a young star like Haaland comes with no guarantee of what he will become in the future, and the many different human and sporting factors that must be taken into consideration cannot be legislated for at such a formative stage of his career. However, what is for certain is that this is an exciting period in the fledgeling career of Haaland, and it is one that should be enjoyed by fans of the Bundesliga, as well as those of the wider European game. But maybe not by the fans of Union Berlin this coming weekend.