DORTMUND • Erling Braut Haaland's start to life at Borussia Dortmund has, frankly, been a little unrealistic.

So too, for that matter, has been his first season in the Champions League. This is, after all, the most exclusive football tournament, the highest level of the game.

But Haaland - still only 19, still a touch raw, still learning - is making it all look suspiciously easy.

Having just joined Dortmund in last month's transfer window from RB Salzburg, he nabbed a hat-trick against Augsburg on his debut and now has eight goals in just five Bundesliga appearances.

He also opened his account on his German Cup bow and after notching a brace either side of Neymar's equaliser to give the hosts a 2-1 win over Paris Saint-Germain in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie on Tuesday night, it is clear this is his moment.

But Haaland, the first Dortmund player to score on his debut in three different competitions to make it 39 goals in 29 games in all competitions, believes that he is only getting started.

"I feel like I still can do a lot better," said the son of former Leeds United and Manchester City player Alf-Inge Haaland. "I have to work hard to play better at this level.

"We want to go through, it's going to be a hard game. The result is quite a dangerous one as Paris have a very strong team and can still go through in the return leg."

With over €1 billion (S$1.5 billion) spent on players, PSG are one of the most expensive teams ever assembled, but they have a tendency towards self-immolation, an ability to scupper themselves at any given moment.

The French champions seem to melt in the white heat of the competition they were built to win, failing to progress to the last eight since 2016 and yet to reach the semi-finals since their Qatari owners' 2011 takeover.

And they are fearful their hopes of a maiden European Cup will be vanquished by Haaland who is in imperious form. He is the quickest to reach 10 Champions League goals and is already the competition's joint-top scorer with Bayern Munich's Robert Lewandowski.

PSG coach Thomas Tuchel, who is under pressure after exiting the competition at the same stage to Manchester United last term, called the Norway striker "an animal" and said: "We couldn't break his will. I felt like we played with a little fear, fear of making a mistake.

"We should have been looking for solutions. We were lacking patience and timing in attacking."

These are qualities that Haaland is demonstrating in spades, with his teammates counting on him to upset the odds at the Parc des Princes on March 11 and seal their first appearance in the quarter-finals since the 2016-17 season.

Dortmund midfielder Axel Witsel told French broadcaster RMC Sport: "He still has huge room for improvement but he is on the road to becoming a truly great player."

Emre Can, who signed for the German team on the eve of this game, added: "Of course, he's a great footballer. He's also a great guy. He's a little bit crazy, funny and, hopefully, he will continue like that."

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, NYTIMES