EPL: Haaland Hits 34 Goals As City Win Fulham To Go Top Table

Manchester City's quest for a fifth Premier League title in six seasons took a step forward on Sunday as they moved to the top of the table following a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Fulham.

The match saw Erling Haaland equal the competition's single-season goal record, scoring his 34th goal of the campaign to match the tallies of Alan Shearer and Andy Cole.

Haaland achieved the feat in just 30 appearances in the Premier League, a remarkable achievement given that he has scored more goals than 21 of the top-flight teams have managed in their first 30 games of the season.

Haaland's goal came from the penalty spot after just three minutes, and it was matched by a stunning long-range strike from Julian Alvarez in the 36th minute. Although Carlos Vinicius equalised for Fulham, City held on for the win to move one point clear of second-placed Arsenal, who have played a game more.

Haaland's remarkable goal-scoring form has been a key factor in City's success this season, and the Norwegian striker has now scored 50 goals for the club in all competitions since he signed from Borussia Dortmund last year. City manager Pep Guardiola will be hoping that Haaland's hot streak continues in the final few games of the season as they seek to hold off the challenge of Arsenal and win yet another Premier League title.

City's win over Fulham was their eighth in a row in the league, and they are now unbeaten in their last 18 matches in all competitions. Guardiola's side need to win five of their last six games to be certain of the title, and with Haaland's goal-scoring prowess showing no signs of slowing down, few would bet against them taking advantage of Arsenal's recent slump in form.

City will be back in action on Wednesday when they host West Ham, while Arsenal will be looking to get back to winning ways when they take on Chelsea on Tuesday.