Manchester City fans are nervously waiting to hear if Erling Haaland will receive a ban following his outburst after Sunday’s 3-3 draw against Tottenham.
The Norway international was visibly livid with Simon Hooper, after the 41-year-old failed to play advantage as Jack Grealish raced clear in the 94th minute against Spurs.
Manchester City’s No.9 then took his frustrations online, posting a tweet on X (previously known as Twitter) about the Swindon-born official’s bizarre decision, which simply read “WTF”.
As a result, Erling Haaland could now face a punishment at Manchester City, with a decision involving Virgil van Dijk back in August acting as a potential indicator…
Van Dijk punishment could spell trouble for Haaland at Manchester City
Well, the Liverpool No.4 was fined £100,000 and also given an extra one-game ban back in August after abusing officials during a 2-1 win over Newcastle.
Van Dijk disagreed with John Brooks and refused to leave the pitch after receiving a red card, before verbally abusing the fourth official – as detailed by ESPN.
It remains to be seen what Haaland said to Hooper on the pitch – we can’t imagine it was too friendly – although his tweet, which of course includes an abbreviated swear word, could land him a similar punishment based on what happened with the Netherlands international on Tyneside.
Of course – at this stage – our suggestion is speculative and purely based on Van Dijk’s clash, although the similarities between both situations mean it would not be a shock to see Haaland banned for at least one match, and also handed a £100,000 fine.
Haaland may have breached FA rule E3.1
By the laws of the game, Haaland is in danger of being charged.
Rule E3.1 states: “A Participant shall at all times act in the best interests of the game and shall not act in any manner which is improper or brings the game into disrepute or use any one, or a combination of, violent conduct, serious foul play, threatening, abusive, indecent or insulting words or behaviour.”
As strange as Hooper’s decision was, Haaland has seemingly breached that rule with his reaction on X, so Manchester City may have a bit of work to do to help the 23-year-old escape punishment.
UPDATE: Haaland has since avoided punishment from the FA – Manchester City have instead been charged with a breach of FA Rule E20 for a failure to control players.
