Erling Haaland responds to Arsenal star Myles Lewis-Skelly at last after being 'mocked'
Erling Haaland has finally spoken out over the moment Arsenal star Myles Lewis-Skelly copied his celebration to mock him last season. And the Manchester City sharpshooter has delivered an understated response to an action that provoked plenty of chatter back in February.
The duo developed a tense relationship on the pitch in the two Premier League matches they faced each other last season. Haaland asked his opponent 'who the f*** are you?' in a tempestuous match at the beginning of the season which saw City score a 98th minute equaliser.
The Norwegian striker's fiery remark came upon Lewis-Skelly's debut on an afternoon where he also told Gunners boss Mikel Arteta to 'stay humble'. The flashpoint was not a moment teenage star Lewis-Skelly would quickly forget.
And when the sides faced off at the Emirates and the England interntional scored in a 5-1 drubbing of Pep Guardiola's team, he made sure to make a dig at at Haaland. The youngster replicated his rival's lotus pose, meditation celebration.
It was a moment that prompted plenty of laughter and a degree of criticism. Reflecting on the incident, Haaland was more blase than most however.
"They won the game 5-1. So yeah, they got me," he told TIME. "If he wanted to use that moment to mock me, that's fair enough for him. Whatever he wants to do, he can do."
It was not the first time that Haaland had seen his celebration used against him. While still playing for Borussia Dortmund, Neymar produced it to hit out at him, while the whole Paris Saint-Germain team replicated it at full-time of the same match.
Haaland remains unperturbed. "If he wanted to use that moment to mock me, that's fair enough for him. Whatever he wants to do, he can do."
The giant striker will make up part of Manchester City's leadership team next season and hopes to bring some stoicism to the squad.
"I'm quite calm in my head," Haaland said. "That's a good thing to bring to others as well, even when the situation can be a bit wild.'
Last season, and City's disappointing failure to defend their Premier League title is behind him. "I almost forgot it until you started speaking about it," Haaland added.
"I cannot keep on thinking about last season. That last season was not good enough, this or that. That's the best part of football. There's always something new that's coming. You have to think about what is coming next and live in the present moment."
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