Guardiola comments say it all after Haaland "burden on dressing room" claim

03 January 2023 , 12:09

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Erling Haaland has a good relationship with Pep Guardiola at Man City (Image: James Gill - Danehouse/Getty Images)

Housing the greatest players in the game is all well and good when things are going to plan - as they currently are for both Manchester City and Erling Haaland.

But dealing with ambitious professionals can be difficult for any boss and high-profile transfers are a relatively common - albeit sometimes surprising - part of modern football.

Neymar's £198million transfer from Barcelona to Paris Saint-Germain in 2017 - which remains a world-record fee - is arguably the most dramatic deal of the modern footballing era. While in the Premier League, Real Madrid snapped up Chelsea's Eden Hazard in 2019 and Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo in 2009, and the Blaugrana poached Liverpool trio Philippe Coutinho, Luiz Suarez and Javier Mascherano in 2018, 2014 and 2010 respectively.

As aforementioned, Pep Guardiola and Man City have nothing to be worried about where Haaland is concerned.

But the striker's dad Alf-Inge Haaland has made a point of telling the press on two occasions that his son will not represent the Etihad club for his entire career and will instead try his hand in another European league.

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"M y impression is that he wants to demonstrate that he can win at any of the big leagues," Alf-Inge recently told France Football. "He was in Germany for two-and-a-half years and he could do something like that in the future.

"Staying in the Premier League for three years and then going to Italy, Spain or France. There's nothing firm about it, but it's a possibility because Erling is capable of being a winner in any team."

Pep Guardiola is getting the best out of Erling Haaland at Man City (Getty Images)

Borussia Dortmund sold Haaland to Man City, with the club's sporting director Sebastian Kehl, who oversaw the £51million switch, later explaining how the saga led the player to become a "burden on the dressing room".

Kehl told German publication Sport Bild: "As much as we always loved Haaland and he was successful with us, in the end, he became a burden on the dressing room, the club and the whole environment.

"He had become the subject of every conversation. Outside the club, almost everything was exclusively focused on him. In the end, the timing of the transfer was right for both parties. And we are all happy for Erling that he continues to be so successful."

Guardiola has managed at the very highest level for his entire career at Barcelona, Bayern Munich and now Man City and knows how to govern high profiles and big egos.

And like legendary Man United boss Sir Alex Ferguson before him - who was never afraid to part company with a player, regardless of how good they were, if they no longer wanted to be at the club - his previous comments on selling individuals suggest a Haaland exit won't have too big an impact on his side.

This summer Man City parted company with an important trio of players; Raheem Sterling, Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko - and all to Premier League rivals.

The former is now a key player in Graham Potter's Chelsea side, while the latter duo both joined Arsenal and have played an integral role in firing the Gunners' title charge at the expense of City.

Guardiola would have known better than anyone what selling this trio would mean for Man City this campaign, but he didn't panic nor stand in the way of the exit.

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Erling Haaland has been in red hot form this season (Jon Super/AP/REX/Shutterstock)

Instead, he admitted he would rather they had remained at the Etihad but accepted it was best to let them go if their hearts were no longer in his project at Man City - suggesting he would likely do the same for Haaland and prevent the saga from dragging on.

"Sometimes the players want more, and the club feel it is the right moment to do it. But the most important thing is they leave happy with the club and what they have done," Guardiola explained.

"Normally when you talk about transfers in Spain, Germany, England it is 10 per cent more. It happens and we know it. It happens because they are really good. They are the best ages and their best years are maybe coming now. That's why they have value in the market.

"Chelsea and Arsenal have paid the money that is fair. And the discussions were perfect, Txiki [Begiristain] told me. Good for both sides and really friendly."

Jake Polden