Erling Haaland at risk of becoming "dressing room burden" again amid Man City exit plan
The impact that Erling Haaland has made in his first season at Manchester City has been nothing short of phenomenal.
While pundits have debated whether or not the addition of an orthodox No.9 has made Pep Guardiola's side weaker, the striking prodigy has done what he's always done best: scored goals.
Haaland has already eclipsed the tally which won Mohamed Salah and Son Heung-min last year's Golden Boot award after plundering 27 goals in just 24 Premier League matches. The 22-year-old has notched 33 goals in all competitions and is seemingly well on the way to breaking the 50-goal barrier.
The manner in which Haaland has seamlessly adapted to life in a new league underlines why the Norwegian international evolved into one of the most coveted players in football during his potent stint with Borussia Dortmund.
However, a constant stream of transfer speculation took its toll. Borussia Dortmund sporting director Sebastian Kehl admitted that Haaland, through no real fault of his own, became somewhat of a "dressing room burden" due to constant transfer speculation.
Kehl previously told German publication Sport Bild: “As much as we always loved Haaland and he was successful with us, in the end, he became a burden on the dressing room, the club and the whole environment.
"He had become the subject of every conversation. Outside the club, almost everything was exclusively focused on him. In the end, the timing of the transfer was right for both parties. And we are all happy for Erling that he continues to be so successful."
Unfortunately for Manchester City, it appears as though history could be repeating itself. Haaland's father, former City midfielder Alfe-Inge, has already been open about his son's desire to prove himself all across Europe. And now Haaland's agent, Rafaela Pimenta, waxed lyrical about Real Madrid before outlining that she's plotting future moves for all her clients - including Haaland.
Speaking at the FT Business of Football summit in London, Pimenta said: "There is the Premier League. And there is Real Madrid. And Real Madrid has something of its own that makes it the Dreamland for the players. Madrid keeps this magic going. It doesn’t have the league competition but it does have the Champions League."
She added: "In my agency, we try to make a plan. We have to make a plan. We need to have a goal. Maybe we won’t achieve it but if don’t know where we’re going for sure we don't get there.
"When we have a player, we make plans. Even if the player is 15 years old. We are planning out his career trajectory. When I started in this business, if I would say to a player ‘I'll bring you to England’ the first thing they would say would be ‘what did I do wrong? Why don’t you like me?'
"But now, if I ask a player ‘what is your goal?’ he will say the Premier League. He doesn’t say City, Chelsea or Arsenal but the Premier League."
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