Erling Haaland signs 9 and a half-year contract worth almost half a billion dollars with English Premier League club Manchester City
Manchester City star Erling Haaland had signed a 9 and a half-year contract worth almost half a billion dollars. Haalandis now contracted to the club until the end of the 2033-34 season.
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Manchester City shocked the world of football by announcing that Erling Haaland had signed a 9 and a half-year contract worth almost half a billion dollars.
Haaland’s previous deal had been due to expire in 2027, but he is now contracted to the club until the end of the 2033-34 season, when he will be 33.
He has been given a pay rise to $AUD1m a week - his previous deal, signed when he joined from Borussia Dortmund in 2022, was worth about $AUD800,000 a week. That makes his latest contract one of the most lucrative in the history of sport. His pounds $AUD52m-a-year basic salary will be supplemented by bonuses.
The announcement is a shot in the arm for City, who are embarking on a rebuild after dropping to sixth in the Premier League table. They also face 115 charges over alleged rule breaches.
At least three signings (Omar Marmoush, Vitor Reis and Abdukodir Khusanov) are expected to arrive at the Eithad Stadium this month, but the announcement of Haaland’s long-term commitment to the club is an even greater coup for City.
The 24-year-old Norway striker, who has scored 111 goals in 126 games for Pep Guardiola’s side, said it had been an “easy” decision to agree such a lengthy deal.
“I am super-proud and happy and I am looking forward to staying here for a long time,” Haaland said. “I really feel at home here.
“In the end, the hunger and the support that I have been getting for the last couple of years from the board, from the bosses and from Pep [meant] it was an easy decision. I am delighted.
“It has been like a dream in these 2 and a half years. I am really looking forward to what is next.”
Persuading Haaland to sign a new contract is a significant achievement for Txiki Begiristain, who is set to leave his post as director of football at the end of the season, when he will be replaced by Sporting Lisbon’s Hugo Viana.
City would not comment but it is thought that Haaland’s new contract contains a release clause that can be activated in 2029, but only for a huge fee.
When asked if Haaland could set records that will never be broken, Guardiola said: “If he continues with the numbers since he arrived, yes. It will depend on the team, it will depend on him as well. But it’s exceptional news for all of us.
“When one player decides to sign this type of contract, one that’s never been done before, it’s because he wants to show how desperate he is to be here, because in ten years many things can happen.”
When Haaland signed for City it was assumed that he would stay at the club for two or three years and then head for Real Madrid or Barcelona. He is a huge fan of Spanish football and came close to signing for Real when he left Dortmund but ultimately decided on a switch to City, where his father, Alfie, used to play; he is now settled in Manchester.
Haaland has scored 16 goals in 21 appearances this season. He hopes to get near the record-breaking 52-goal tally he amassed in his first season, which ended with City winning the Treble.
“That will for ever be the most special season for me in my career,” Haaland said.
He also confirmed that he wanted to become the Premier League’s all-time top scorer, eclipsing the 260-goal tally of Alan Shearer. “I will do my best to go after Alan Shearer,” Haaland said.
No mention was made in the press release of any clauses contained in the deal. Haaland’s original contract contained one that allowed him to leave if Guardiola exited the club. The Catalan’s future is not in doubt as two months ago he signed a new contract that will keep him at City until the end of the 2026-27 season. Haaland said that Guardiola, the City manager, was one of the main reasons he agreed a new deal.
“I have improved a lot. It is so nice to work with him,” Haaland said. “Not only because he is the best, but he is also the most hardworking person I have seen.
“It is funny to work with him. It is tough because he demands a lot, but that is what I want. I want people to demand a lot from me and to put pressure on me.”
What is clear is that Haaland is content in Manchester. Last month the striker’s partner, Isabel Haugseng Johansen, gave birth to their first child.
The club have done everything to make Haaland feel welcome too. They ship in the best Norwegian salmon for him - he is a voracious eater who is allowed to eat more than team-mates because of his 6ft 4in body.
Haaland is convinced that City will bounce back from their poor first half of the season, which came after they won a record four Premier League titles in a row. “I am really confident that we will turn things around,” he said.
He may miss City’s next match, away to Ipswich Town tomorrow (Sunday), though, as he suffered a minor injury in the 2-2 draw with Brentford on Tuesday.
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Originally published as Erling Haaland signs 9 and a half-year contract worth almost half a billion dollars with English Premier League club Manchester City
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