“He starting grabbing my…” – Erling Haaland reveals x-rated exchange with Italy star | OneFootball

Manchester City’s Erling Haaland has opened up on an x-rated exchange with Italy international Gianluca Mancini during Norway’s 1-4 win in Milan this week.

The Manchester City striker, who has been at the heart of Norway’s remarkable push to their first World Cup since 1998, once again delivered on the big stage but only after a confrontational moment that visibly fired him into life.

Italy, needing an almost impossible nine-goal victory to leapfrog Norway at the top of Group I, produced an energetic first-half performance and even took an early lead. But after the break, Norway took full control as Antonio Nusa levelled before Haaland scored twice in quick succession – goals that brought him to an astonishing 16 goals in eight qualifying matches.

The striker’s second-half explosion swung the night decisively in Norway’s favour, all but confirming their long-awaited return to the world stage and sending Italy into the play-offs once again.

It was in the heat of that competitive atmosphere that Erling Haaland’s altercation with Gianluca Mancini occurred, and one that the striker later admitted gave him an unexpected burst of motivation.

Speaking with Norwegian media outlet TV2 after the victory at the San Siro, Erling Haaland opened up on his heated exchange with Italy’s Mancini, and the events that led up to both the clash and the striker’s two goals scored shortly afterwards.

“At 1-1 he started grabbing my buttocks, and I thought, ‘What are you doing’,” Haaland revealed to reporters after the contest.

The Manchester City striker continued, “So I fired myself up a bit and said to him, ‘Thanks a lot for the motivation, let’s f*****g have it!’

“Then I scored two goals, we win 4-1, so that’s great. Thanks to him.”

In recent weeks, the 25-year-old has been increasingly vocal about feeling at the peak of his powers, and this latest performance further reinforces that confidence. His ability to turn provocation into productivity mirrors comments he gave before Manchester City’s clash with Liverpool, where he insisted he is currently operating at the best level of his career.

For City supporters, Haaland’s ruthless response in Milan will be an encouraging sign ahead of the club’s return to Premier League action. With Pep Guardiola reaching the 1,000-match milestone last time out and Rayan Cherki recently earning glowing praise from the striker, the mood around the Etihad Stadium remains buoyant heading into a crucial stretch of the season.

As for Norway, the hope will be that Erling Haaland’s form carries straight into next year’s World Cup, where he will follow in the footsteps of his father, Alf-Inge Haaland, who represented the nation in 1998.