Question: has Erling Haaland’s goofy meme potential lessened since the World Cup ended and he returned to club football? Answer: not at all. Last night, he was rested for Manchester City’s Carabao Cup tie against Brighton, and celebrated the penalty-shootout win by doing a fun little dance on the pitch. He looked extremely cosy, dressed in a black beanie and the kind of big, baggy coat that two to three children might hide in while pretending to be an adult.

But in this case, said coat contained only one (1) Erling Haaland – and under the left sleeve was a very Haaland kind of watch, a Breitling Super Chronomat B01 44. Now, Norway’s greatest goal machine isn’t a stranger to your typical footballer’s wrist candy. Back in the heady days of summer, after his internet-dominating World Cup campaign, he wore a couple of very glitzy things while partying in Saint-Tropez: a platinum Omega Speedmaster with a ring of emeralds on the bezel, and a slick Richard Mille RM 55-01.

But when he’s on duty, Haaland is a Breitling ambassador – he even has a collab watch with the brand that has his name and silhouette engraved on it. So he has his pick of the catalogue, really, and this Super Chronomat is an interesting one. First of all, it’s a real chunky boy, at 44m rather than the 42mm common for chronograph versions of the Chronomat. Breitling did a big Chronomat relaunch in May, giving the line more of a dressy tilt – but this one, from 2024, is unapologetically brash and sporty. Haaland, at six foot five, is one of few guys that can really pull off something like this.

That said, it is made from titanium, meaning it’s quite a bit lighter than the equivalent design in steel would be. So no danger of slowing down Haaland’s fearsome pace, should he need to do any sprints off the pitch. (Does he get the bus? Probably not. Unless it's the team bus!) The colour scheme is subdued and functional: a mix of silver, grey and black, with the seconds hand picked out in blue. The raised bezel looks pretty gnarly too, with the 15-, 30-, and 45-second intervals marked with raised tiles. It’s built like a tank basically, but a tank with unexpected agility. Which is basically Haaland’s whole value proposition: a big guy who seems to be able to teleport across the pitch when he sniffs out a chance of a goal. No wonder he’s so into Breitlings like this.