Haaland misses penalty and upstaged by hat trick scorer Gyokeres in Champions League

By The Associated Press

Manchester City's Erling Haaland reacts after missing a penalty kick during the UEFA Champions League opening phase match between Sporting and Manchester City in Lisbon, Portugal, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Armando Franca)[ASSOCIATED PRESS/Armando Franca]

LISBON, Portugal (AP) — Erling Haaland has been upstaged by another striker from Scandinavia in the Champions League. While Haaland missed a penalty for Manchester City, Viktor Gyokeres converted two spot kicks as part of his hat trick for Sporting in a 4-1 win for the Portuguese team. Gyokeres, a Sweden international, is one of the hottest strikers in Europe at the moment and now has 21 goals in 17 games for Sporting this season. Haaland, who plays for Norway, is widely regarded as the best striker in the world but he couldn’t put away his penalty after a handball. He stepped up and smashed his effort against the crossbar in the 69th. At the other end, Gyokeres converted his in the 48th to make it 2-1 and did so again in the 80th to make it 4-1 to Sporting.