Speaking ahead of tonight’s Champions League game against Copenhagen, Manchester City’s Norwegian net-buster Erling Haaland told reporters that he is open to whatever his professional future may offer – even though he’s currently loving life at the Etihad.Manchester City are well-positioned to advance to the quarter-finals after winning the first leg 3-1 against Copenhagen, making it seven wins out of seven in this season’s competition. The Danish champion faces a daunting task as they have failed to win away at an English club in their last seven attempts. For Haaland, they should be an easy target – especially considering there was a time when the Norwegian was on trial in the Danish capital and a deal was close. Still, it didn’t happen, and his journey took him to Austria and Germany before he became a Cityzen.##NAJAVA_MECA_7930333##The record-breaking striker has expressed his contentment with being a part of Manchester City, despite the interest shown by Real Madrid and other major clubs. The Norwegian striker, who is currently under contract until 2027, confirmed that he is not considering a new deal at this time. Speaking at the pre-game press conference, Haaland revealed that he is focused on winning more trophies for Manchester City in his second season with the team. Although the club is keen for him to sign a new contract, the player has not made any decisions about his future. “I’m 23, and I won everything, and I got a taste of how it is to win and how I work is that when I feel this, I want to win it again. Easy as that. I’m really happy, especially with the people that I’m surrounded by. The manager, the directors, the board are a group of amazing people and I’m really happy. If I say this now, it will probably be a massive headline…tomorrow you never know what the future brings but I’m happy and you can write this but you also have to write everything I said right before. My focus mainly now is on the pitch. There are a lot of games. Two days ago, there was the Manchester Derby; now, it is the Champions League, and then on Sunday, it will be on Liverpool. I think I should focus on that, I don’t think I should focus on anything else now.”##EDITORS_CHOICE##Haaland emphasized how much he enjoys playing for Manchester City and the thrill of winning trophies. He is concentrating on his performance on the field and is not currently considering any new contracts. Despite recent meetings between Barcelona and his agent, he is happy to remain with Manchester City for the time being.The 23-year-old Norway international has scored an impressive 80 goals in 84 appearances for the Treble winners. Although he has already achieved remarkable success, Haaland believes there is still room for improvement. Last week, he scored five goals in City’s FA Cup fifth-round victory against Luton. Despite missing almost two months due to a foot injury, he won last season’s Premier League Golden Boot and is currently leading the standings for this season.”There’s a lot of things I can become better at. People say I’m good at scoring goals but I missed the biggest chance in the world ever two days ago. I can also become better at that.” Solskjaer on Haaland: “The summer before I arrived, I rang the club & said you’ve got to sign this boy, he’ll be top, absolutely top class & that was June or July 2018.” “They said ‘No, No…’ The club just didn’t bid for him. I knew him for 18 months.” pic.twitter.com/zOQtUH4sBz— ☈ッ (@TheFergusonWay) March 6, 2024 Haaland’s mental strength is impressive, given that he leads the Premier League in missed ‘big chances’ with 26. He used to struggle with this, but was able to put a recent miss out of his mind and help secure City’s victory over United. City aims to become the first English club to win four consecutive top-flight titles.”It’s been a challenge. When I was young, I would start crying if we lost and I missed a lot of chances. I’ve been working on it a lot and it’s been a challenge. I demand a lot from myself and my team-mates demand a lot from me.”Haaland enjoyed a remarkable debut campaign in English football last season, scoring an impressive 52 goals across all competitions – the highest of any player in the Premier League era. Dixie Dean of Everton remains the only player to have scored more in a single English season, with 63 goals in 1927-28. Despite his immediate success, Haaland has remained focused and determined.”You can think about it in two ways. One, I came here and won it all, the other I’m 23 years old and got the taste of it, how it is to win everything, and when I feel this, I want to win it again. Easy as that.”UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE1/8 finals – second legTuesdayBayern – Lazio 3-0 (2-0)/Kane 38, 66, Muller 45+2/Bayern win 3-1 on aggregate.Real Sociedad – Paris Saint-Germain 1-2 (0-1)/Merino 89 – Mbappe 15, 56/Paris Saint-Germain win 4-1 on aggregate.Wednesday23:00: (1.60) Real Madrid (4.20) RB Leipzig (6.00) /first leg 1-0/23:00: (1.15) Man.City (8.00) Copenhagen (16.0) /first leg 3-1/Tuesday the 12th23:00: (1.77) Barcelona (3.60) Napoli (4.80) /first leg 1-1/23:00: (1.28) Arsenal (5.70) Porto (10.5) /first leg 0-1/Wednesday the 13th23:00: (3.05) Atl.Madrid (3.30) Inter (2.55) /first leg 0-1/23:00: (2.15) Dortmund (3.50) PSV (3.30) / first leg 1-1/***odds are subject to change***
