Pep Guardiola, the manager of Manchester City, denies rumors that Erling Haaland’s contract has a specific release clause allowing him to join Real Madrid in 2024.
Guardiola rejected rumors that Madrid had engineered an exclusive deal to sign the 22-year-old Norwegian striker after he continued his great start at City by scoring twice against Copenhagen in the Champions League.
“It’s not true,” Guardiola said. “He has not got a release clause for Real Madrid, or any other team.
“Am I annoyed by the rumours? No, absolutely not. Rumours, and people talking, you cannot control it – so always we have to worry about what we can control.
“The important thing is that he has adapted [since joining City] really well. I have the feeling he is incredibly happy here, and this is the most important thing.”
Given Haaland’s incredible run for City – he has now scored 19 goals in his first 12 games since signing from Borussia Dortmund in the summer – it is hardly unexpected to see him connected with the Spanish giants.
His display in Wednesday’s one-sided 5-0 triumph over the Danish side was the latest proof of his amazing scoring power, with even team-mate Jack Grealish left startled by Haaland’s performance.
“It’s unbelievable, honestly,” Grealish told BT Sport. “I’ve never witnessed anything like it in my life. For the first and second goals, I was just laughing. He is always there.
“Their keeper said something to me as I was walking back. He said ‘he’s not human!’ I said ‘you’re telling me?’ Hopefully he can carry on this form and take us to glory.”