Alfe-Inge Haaland, father of Erling Haaland, has opened up about the reason behind the striker not joining Real Madrid and instead opting for Premier League champions Manchester City.
Haaland’s dad, who himself was a former City player revealed in a documentary that the presence of Karim Benzema already in the Los Blancos setup coupled with their pursuit of Kylian Mbappe early in the recently concluded transfer window.
This past summer, the Norwegian was one of the market’s most sought-after players. Every major club in Europe wanted to sign the 22-year-old international, from Barcelona to Chelsea to Manchester United to PSG.
Los Blancos were also drawn into the battle for the ace striker. However, the player chose to bypass the reigning Spanish and European champions, as well as other interested parties, in order to join Premier League champions City.
After joining Pep Guardiola’s juggernaut, Haaland is tearing up the Premier League, scoring ten goals in six games, including two stunning hat-tricks. Alf-Inge Haaland, the striker’s father and a former Manchester City player, has now shed some light on the striker’s decision to move to the Etihad Stadium rather than Real Madrid.
In the documentary ‘Haaland: The Choice’ for ViaPlay, Alf-Inge Haaland cites the presence of Karim Benzema and Real Madrid’s pursuit of Kylian Mbappe as reasons for his son’s refusal to join Los Blancos.
“You can’t really [say no to Real Madrid]. We have a criterion in mind, who needs a ‘9’? Manchester City is a 10, it is the perfect option, while Real Madrid is a 5 or a 6 because of how Benzema is playing now. Will they manage to sign Mbappe?”
the retired defender said.
Mbappe eventually signed a new contract with PSG rather than Real Madrid. Benzema, on the other hand, is still going strong after scoring more than 40 goals for the first time in his career in 2022/23 – he already has four in five games this season.
