Haaland responds sarcastically to Manchester City accusations and clarifies his stance on leaving
Norway's Erling Haaland, the Manchester City striker, has broken his silence regarding the accusations levelled at his club over breaching the financial regulations of the Premier League, during a lengthy interview in which he addressed the matter and his future with the team.
According to the British newspaper "The Sun", Haaland made his remarks after Norway's 3-1 win over Wales in the UEFA Nations League. The striker found the net in that victory before facing questions about the charges hanging over Manchester City.
Fresh from celebrating under coach Craig Bellamy, Haaland was pressed on the ruling in the Manchester City case, which relates to more than 100 alleged breaches of Premier League regulations.
He responded: "In 2009, I played for Bryne's under-9 team, in 2010 for an under-10 team, and in 2011 for an under-11 team. In 2012 I played for an under-12 team, then an under-13 team. Shall we continue with the list? We don't need to mention it all."
The Norwegian then rattled off every side he had turned out for during the period covered by the charges.
He added: "In 2014 I played for an under-14 team, and in 2015 for an under-15 team and the national team. After that I played for an under-16 team, I think. And in 2016 I moved to the first team, the second team and the youth team at Bryne."
"And in 2017 I moved to Molde, then carried on playing for them in 2018, whether with the first team or Molde 2, and I also featured for some time with the youth team," he continued.
He went on: "So I find it difficult to answer this question, because it concerns a legal battle. It's a case between the Premier League and Manchester City, and a specialised committee will handle looking into it. Am I supposed to answer that? I'm not really sure."
Then came the joke. Haaland suggested some of his Norway team-mates, who had played for City during the period in question, might give a better answer.
"I think a fair number of Norwegian players were at the club during that period," he added. "There was Abdisalam Ibrahim, Martin Samuelsen and Omar Elabdellaoui, and Kjetil Haug was also there. I think there are other players, but I don't remember their names."
He went on: "It's a question that's difficult to answer, because I don't know much about this case. I assume the answers will emerge eventually, but I don't know when. I haven't read much about the matter."
His focus, the striker stressed, sits entirely on performing for Manchester City, not on the legal wrangling around the club.
He explained: "Quite honestly, my focus is on trying to deliver the best performance with Manchester City. It's the club I signed a five-year contract with in 2022, then I renewed my contract for nine and a half years in late 2024, and I think that says everything about this subject. I'm a Manchester City player, and I'm very happy to be there."
Asked whether the case affected his thinking about his future at the club, Haaland doubled down on his choices. That long-term deal, he pointed out, spoke for his confidence in the decision.
"I understand you want to get a headline here, but as I said, I signed a long-term contract in 2024," he added. "I think I made a very good decision in joining Manchester City in 2022, and we can all agree on that."
He continued: "I won't say it myself, but look at the trophies I've won, and at how much I've developed on and off the pitch. I'm standing here after securing a 3-1 win in an international match, and we're also top of our group in Europe."
He concluded: "Things aren't going well for Manchester City in the league, but we'll try to change that against Fulham, and we can't focus on this matter now, as I have to focus on the Denmark match."
