Erling Haaland has a huge release clause at Man City that decreases as his contract goes on, according to reports.
The Norway international has been phenomenal since completing a £64m transfer from Borussia Dortmund in the summer transfer window.
He has already provided 20 goals and three assists in 12 matches in the Premier League and Champions League combined this season.
That has led to a petition being created called ‘Petition to get Erling Haaland banned from Association Football because it’s just not fair’ as fans, pundits and former players were left marveling at his performances.
There were rumours of interest from other big clubs around Europe before Man City sealed the deal for Haaland and now The Athletic insist that those clubs could have a chance to sign him in two years’ time.
The Athletic claim:
‘Haaland has a €200million (£175.5m; $194m) release clause that kicks in from the summer of 2024, when he will be two years into his City deal. Its value then decreases as his five-year contract nears its end.’‘Crucially, the clause applies to any club outside England — not just Real Madrid. But no Premier League rivals will be able to trigger an option at any point during Haaland’s stay at City. This makes a move from City directly to another English club almost impossible.’
Scoring at his current rate, Haaland will obliterate the Premier League record for goals scored in a season and former Premier League defender Gary Neville says the Man City striker is “something really special”.
Speaking after Man City destroyed Man Utd 6-3 in the Manchester derby earlier this month, Neville told Sky Sports: “To start with, you’ve got to give credit to Manchester City, their football and their outstanding players, their outstanding manager and their striker.
“Sometimes, you see everything right – the physical attributes, the technical attributes, the attitude. And then you get genuine world-class.
“Manchester United had a player on the bench in Cristiano Ronaldo who has been world-class for 10-15 years. But we’re seeing the next generation of world-class player. That’s what we’ve seen here.
“I know Phil Foden also scored a hat-trick, he’s a local boy and he should be incredibly proud. He’s a brilliant English player but Erling Haaland is something completely different.
“We’re in the presence of something really special and I think we know that with the numbers he’s hit at the start of this season. He makes very difficult things look very easy.
“He’s unplayable. That’s the takeaway from the game. Obviously, well done to Manchester City and we’ve seen some fantastic players at this club with Kevin De Bruyne, David Silva, Sergio Aguero – many great players. But this player has the ability to be something that peaks everything. I didn’t expect him to be anything other than what he was when I met him in midweek. He’s confident but humble. He was relaxed. There were no problems with him… he was an hour late! But I enjoyed speaking with him for half an hour.