'Absolute joke' - Man City fans fume at 'disrespectful' Erling Haaland snub
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(Credit: Imago, Getty)
Oliver Walton
Mon 22 September 2025 18:34, UK
Man City fans have expressed their outrage at Erling Haaland being overlooked on the global stage despite his strong form last season.
Erling Haaland has been one of the best strikers in world football since he burst onto the scene at Borussia Dortmund as a teenager.
The Norway striker joined Man City for an initial £51million [Sky Sports] in 2022, and he helped the club achieve a historic treble in his debut season with a fantastic record of 52 goals in 53 games in all competitions.
He netted another 38 times in 45 matches in 2023-24 as they won another Premier League, then continued his fine form by scoring 34 goals in 48 games last term, but City failed to pick up silverware for the first time in seven seasons.
Football Insider revealed on Sunday (21 September) that Real Madrid and Barcelona are both considering moves for Haaland next summer, even though his current contract runs until 2034, and he may well be tempted to leave based off this latest snub.
(Credit Imago)
Haaland finished 10th in the 2022 Ballon d’Or rankings, and he has done even better in years gone by with a second-placed finish in 2023 and a fifth-placed finish last time out.
This year’s award ceremony is taking place on Monday (22 September), with the Ballon d’Or’s official X account revealing that Haaland has surprisingly finished in a lowly 26th place, despite his stellar form last term, with City not winning a trophy likely a big reason why.
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A number of Citizens supporters took to the social media platform to express their anger in response to the reveal, with one saying: “Haaland scored 45 club and country goals just to finish 26th what a joke,” while another said: “51 G/A in 58 games….Just cancel these farce awards.”
Another added to the fume, saying: “He was better than most people in top 25, while one questioned the award’s validity and said: “It has lost meaning.”
Man City were also criticised for posting about his ranking as one fan replied to them to ask: “Why are you acknowledging this disrespect?”
Haaland’s quality is absolutely undoubted by this point, and it does feel like 26th is a lot lower than his true position as one of the world’s best strikers, if not the best right now.
Haaland currently leads the league in xG, and the 25-year-old has started the 2025-26 campaign in fine form, with seven goals in six games in all competitions, while he netted five times in one match for Norway against Moldova earlier in September.
His latest strike came on Sunday (21 September) as Man City came away with a 1-1 draw against title rivals Arsenal, and it was one of his best in recent memory as he set up an attack from well inside his own half and headed a fast counter with Tijjani Reijnders before finishing with aplomb past David Raya.
He is clearly targeting more major silverware under Pep Guardiola this season, but they are already eight points behind Liverpool and so may soon have to concede any hopes of a league title once again.
Guardiola is “desperate” to keep Haaland at Man City, but another campaign without a Premier League or Champions League triumph could well push him to want to leave the club, which would be a disaster for the club considering his ability to win games by himself.