Sheffield United captain John Egan believes Man City star Erling Haaland is already one of the GREATEST strikers in Premier League history

Sheffield United captain John Egan believes Erling Haaland is already one of the greatest forwards in Premier League history.

Egan faced Manchester City’s goalscoring machine in last season’s FA Cup semi-final at Wembley when a hat-trick from Riyad Mahrez gave Pep Guardiola’s men a 3-0 win.

City then achieved a glorious treble as 23-year-old Haaland scored 52 goals in an astonishing debut season in English football.

Republic of Ireland defender Egan marked some of the top-flight leading forwards during the Blades’ previous spell in the Premier League between 2019 and 2021.

As he gears up to cross swords again with Haaland at Bramall Lane on Sunday afternoon, Egan said: ‘With his goalscoring record from last season, he’s already in that rank as a Premier League great for me.

Erling Haaland has already scored two goals in as many games in the league this season

“I’ve played against players like Harry Kane and Sergio Agüero and they are clearly at the top.

Can Haaland become the greatest striker in Premier League history?

“That’s a long way in the future, but his all-round game is certainly incredible and that’s why he has the goals he has.”

After keeping Haaland calm at Wembley in April, Egan is aiming for a repeat, adding: “We’ve been working on the training pitch but your concentration as a defender has to be 100% when you face Haaland.

“His offer is not bad either, so as a team we have to come up with a game plan and be as aggressive as possible.”

Paul Heckingbottom’s men have been written off in many circles as relegation certainties after selling their two best players over the summer.

Highly rated Senegal striker Iliman Ndiaye was signed by Marseille and Norwegian midfielder Sander Berge joined Burnley.

Still, Cork native Egan (30) believes the Blades can defy the odds by using the collective spirit that took them to automatic promotion last season.

The Blades will try to secure a major setback against the Premier League champions on Sunday afternoon

More than a handful of new signings have been made and more are expected before the window closes.

Egan stated, “Team spirit is very important. I think it’s one of the most underrated parts of football.

“There has been a big change of players this summer, but we know what we want to be and who we are.

“Every day starts on the training pitch and many guys here lead by example.

“I could go through a good five, six, seven guys to look at and be inspired by, and that’s what we like to create here.”