I’m a former Portsmouth striker who’s scored more goals than Erling Haaland and Marcus Rashford combined this season

FORMER Portsmouth striker Brett Pitman is the highest goalscorer in the top nine tiers of English football - edging out Manchester City machine Erling Haaland.

Now playing for AFC Portchester in ninth tier Wessex League Premier Division, 34-year-old Pitman has hit 43 goals for the season.

Pitman has bagged five hat-tricks this season too, one more than Man City's main man.

If he keeps up this rate of 1.25 per game then he will hit 60 by the end of the season.

Pitman has scored TEN goals more than Man City star Haaland, who has 33 across all competitions.

He also has 18 more than Manchester United man Marcus Rashford.

That means, looking at league goals only, Haaland and Rashford have hit a combined 41, which is less than Pitman's 43.

On his goalscoring, he said: "I'm playing for a great team at the moment and that really helps.

"We have got good players all over the pitch and it's not just me that has been scoring goals.

"I expected to score a lot of goals when I moved to Portchester, I still feel pretty fit.

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"I know what I'm good at now and I've got the experience to know where I should be on the pitch.

"Compared to when I was playing in the top flights of football, it is pretty easy to score goals.

"I don't want to get too carried away, Haaland is playing in the Premier League and I'm not."

The ex-Pompey striker, made 401 appearances for South Coast sides Bournemouth and Portsmouth, scoring a total of 144 across both clubs.

The striker is edging out lower league players such as former Northampton Town pro Leon Lobjolt, who starts for fellow ninth tier club Leighton Town in the South Midlands Premier League.

His lead could have been cut as City and Haaland received a loan bid from seventh tier Ashton United, which could have caused Pitman's lead to evaporate rather quickly.

Haaland did not go to the World Cup and had over a month to kill before the Premier League resumes.

The Robins confirmed they did make an offer in a  that read: "Ashton United can confirm that the club has submitted a 28-day loan approach for Manchester City striker Erling Haaland. 

"With the current Premier League champions not in action until late December due to the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

"The Robins have reached out to our neighbours at the Ethiad in order to keep Haaland’s match fitness with him not being involved in Qatar."