Erling Haaland Takes Subtle Dig at Roy Keane & Critics After Winning Premier League Golden Boot for the 2nd Year in a Row

Manchester City curtained the 2023/24 Premier League campaign by lifting their fourth consecutive silverware. But it is not all about collective triumphs as their star player Erling Haaland won the Golden Boot for scoring the most goals in the league. As he garners praise for his achievement, the Norwegian superstar seizes the moment to take a jibe at Roy Keane and other critics, insisting that he will let his Golden Boot ‘do the talking.’

After receiving the prestigious individual trophy, the former Dortmund man was asked to speak about his achievements in accordance with the critique surrounding him throughout the season. While speaking to Sky Sports Premier League, he said, “Not bad. Not much to say. It’s better to just play football, don’t speak too much. Let other people do the speaking. That’s better. Relax, enjoy, stay focussed, let these boots here do the talking.” 

This claim is a subtle response to Roy Keane’s earlier comments. After Haaland fired blank during Arsenal vs City’s stalemate, the Manchester United legend branded the youngster a ‘League Two player.’ While many came to his defense, the criticism remained. Notably, the player was often seen sidelined due to injury and even when he turned up for big games, he failed to find the back at the net. Yet, Haaland was able to lift the Golden Boot with a tally of 27. 

His ex-teammate and Chelsea star Cole Palmer took the second spot with 22 goals with Newcastle United’s Alexander Isak taking the third place with one goal less. Meanwhile last year, Haaland scored 36 goals. Either way, it’s quite a bold response from the generational talent. Certainly, he’ll be looking to keep up his scoring antics for the new season. Although Haaland repeated the feat, his teammate failed to do so. 

While Erling Haaland celebrates the Golden Boot, Kevin De Bruyne fails to defend his feat!

Last year, Kevin De Bruyne finished the leader of the most assists in the Premier League with a tally of 16. However, this year, he failed to defend his feat to make it a second consecutive time. Instead, Aston Villa forward Ollie Watkins finished atop with 13 assists, followed by Chelsea’s Cole Palmer, who again finished second aside from the top scorer list with his decent 11 assists throughout the campaign. But where does KDB stand? 

Surprisingly enough, the Belgian international missed the top spot with a difference of just three assits. He shares the third place along with eight other players including the likes of Martin Odegaard, Son Heung-Min, and Mohamed Salah. However, one can cut some slack for De Bruyne, who missed the majority of the first half season due to a major injury. Either way, it’s good that his teammate Erling Haaland managed to defend his win.