Haaland’s SECRET clauses in Man City contract put Real Madrid and Liverpool on alert

Robin Bairner

23 Jan 2025 06:38 CST
4 min read

Erling Haaland, Man City, 2024/25 — © IMAGO

Manchester City’s Erling Haaland may have signed a monster new contract with the Premier League champions, but the Norway international has left the door open for a potential exit before his deal expires in 2034.

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Haaland hit the headlines when he penned a nine-and-a-half deal worth €600,000 per week, effectively committing his entire career to Pep Guardiola’s side. Or so we thought.

Details of two secret clauses in Haaland’s deal have been revealed by Cadena Ser that could open the door to the 24-year-old departing the Etihad Stadium before previously expected.

It outlines two scenarios in which Man City could see their goal-a-game striker leave the club in the future.

What clauses are in Haaland’s contract?

Firstly, if Guardiola’s side are relegated, he will be granted a break option. While there is no prospect of City going down on a sporting level, the club does have the infamous 115 charges hanging over them. There is speculation that the Premier League could opt to demote them to the Championship, in which case Haaland would be allowed to depart.

Similarly, should City miss out on the Champions League because of non-sporting reasons this season and next term, he will also be able to leave.

The report adds: “There are also suspicions that the contract has more unknowns from the third year onwards.”

And this has not gone unnoticed, the Spanish source claims.

Current ETV

Erling Haaland

F (C)

Man City

Erling Haaland

F (C)

Man City

ETV Range

€112.4M - €187.3M

European giants remain on alert

Real Madrid, Liverpool and PSG are said to be closely following developments. These three clubs were already tracking the player in case City should be heavily punished by the Premier League and that remains the case.

He was asked about potential interest from Real Madrid and Barcelona prior to Man City's Champions League match against PSG.

Haaland replied: "What do you want me to say? I just signed a nine-year contract.

"I don't think about the charges. I trust the club knows what it's doing."

Haaland’s agent Rafaela Pimenta has the reputation for being one of the smartest operators in the game, so it would be surprising if she had not installed some kind of emergency exit given the charges hanging over Man City.

On top of this, the striker had previously been reticent to commit his long-term future, so the almost decade-long contract marks a sudden departure from his previous stance. With Haaland known to love Spain, it would be a shock if there were not some get-out clauses installed in the deal that became active some time in the future.