Manchester City have been dealt a major boost as it has emerged that Erling Haaland’s reported release clause no longer applies thanks to the work of boss Pep Guardiola.
The Norwegian striker made the switch to the Premier League this summer, and has taken the English top flight by storm, racking up 28 goals in 26 games for the Cityzens as they battle Arsenal for the title this season.
But early reports had suggested that he didn’t intend on staying in Manchester for long, with a release clause reportedly in his contract that would allow him to join Real Madrid for 175m euros from the summer of 2024.
However, this has since changed. As per Goal, the Norwegian no longer has any such clause in his contract. Why? Because of Pep Guardiola.
According to the report, ‘both parties agreed that if Guardiola left in 2023, Haaland should continue for another year at City, with another coach, being able to activate that clause in 2024′.
However, Guardiola’s decision to renew his contract at the Etihad Stadium until 2025 has meant that the clause is no longer valid, leaving Haaland without a fixed way out before his contract is up in 2027.
And, as part of that deal, it was reported that they two parties had agreed an ‘anti-Haaland’ clause to prevent Real from signing a similar attacker in the near future.
They are also rumoured to still be keen on Kylian Mbappe, who evaded them last summer but is thought to be considering his future after Paris Saint Germain were once again knocked out in the early knockout stages of the Champions League.
