Erling Haaland: Arsenal rocked as favourite to sign Man City striker named
It’s bad news for Arsenal on two fronts, with the new favourite to sign Manchester City striker, Erling Haaland, named by a report.
Man City are in turmoil having been found guilty of breaching FFP on 114 separate occasions. The club will appeal, though a punishment on a scale we’ve never seen before in English football is anticipated if they fail to prove their innocence.
According to Sky Sports, expulsion from the Premier League is NOT a likely outcome.
To finalise that punishment, 15 of the other 19 Premier League sides must vote in favour of expulsion, and Sky state the damage that could do to commercial prospects makes it unlikely enough votes will be cast in that direction.
However, a gigantic points deduction that would effectively relegate Man City anyway is among the range of reprimands that can be handed down.
And if Man City do lose their top flight status, the expectation is many of the club’s leading stars will push to leave.
Football Insider have already claimed Haaland – who aged 26 is in the prime of his career – has no desire to stick around for a rebuild.
FI as well as FootballTransfers have both reported on Arsenal’s interest in signing the Norwegian. The striker position is arguably where the Gunners are weakest, and Fabrizio Romano has confirmed an addition in the No 9 spot in 2027 is on the agenda.
Real Madrid and Barcelona are also circling, but according to the latest from Le Parisien (as cited by Transfer News Live), it’s Luis Enrique’s all-conquering PSG who are now favourites to sign Haaland.
PSG favourites to sign Erling Haaland
It’s claimed the back-to-back Champions League winners view Haaland as the natural successor to Ousmane Dembele who turns 30 next year and could be heading to Saudi Arabia.
There’s talk in the media right now of a €175m release clause which clubs can trigger. However, prior reporting from Fabrizio Romano stated the release clause in Haaland’s contract doesn’t become active until 2029.
In terms of a relegation clause, one does not exist in the frontman’s contract, meaning the transfer fee a buying club must pay in 2027 will be colossal.
Haaland moving to PSG would be bad news for Arsenal on two fronts.
Firstly, they’d miss out on yet another world class attacker after trying and failing to sign Morgan Rogers and Vinicius Junior over the summer.
Secondly, their quest for a first ever Champions League title would be dented by the No 1 team in Europe right now, PSG, getting even stronger through Haaland’s arrival.
Alf-Inge Haaland speaks about PSG
Erling’s father, Alf-Inge Haaland, previously labelled PSG a “fantastic club” and refused to rule out a future move to the French capital.
“PSG is a fantastic club, and I wish them all the best,” said Alf-Inge prior to Norway’s clash with France at the World Cup.
“They’re coming off two incredible seasons with those two Champions League titles. It’s a huge club, but the rumours were unfounded at the time.
“The timing wasn’t right; it wasn’t the right moment. PSG is still a top club, and I wish them all the best. I don’t know. Time will tell, but nothing is impossible.”