According to club president Ferran Soriano, Erling Haaland didn't join Man City for the money and will require time to acclimate.
Erling Haaland hopes to get started quickly, although adaptation may take some time.
Next month, ERLING HAALAND will arrive to the Etihad with the goal of contributing significantly to Manchester City's winning "machine."
The £51.4 million Norwegian's status as a "superstar" had no impact on manager Pep Guardiola's choice to sign him to a contract with the Premier League. According to City's chief executive Ferran Soriano, the champions' acquisition of the Borussia Dortmund goal-scoring wonder was motivated solely by football.
Despite earning £375,000 a week, he thinks the 21-year-decision old's to join the Premier League champions and follow in his father Alfie's footsteps had nothing to do with money.
Instead, Haaland embraced the challenge of joining a squad that over the previous two seasons had grown accustomed to succeeding without a striker.
It was a protracted process, Soriano added. He had the option of going anyplace because there were so many clubs and rumors.
The agreement was clear because he had a release clause, but many clubs were interested in signing him.
He decided, and his decision was based on football-related factors.
'Where am I going to play?' is one example of this. How will I collaborate with this coach? The financial choice wasn't difficult, so it was a football decision. "Many teams were eager to meet his compensation demands, and the fee was agreed upon by the release clause.
The technical conversation about football and how he will fit into this well-oiled machine, in my opinion, was the most important part. He had to feel that he could get into it since we've won four out of the last five leagues and we've scored so many goals.
Soriano acknowledged that Haaland will need some time to get used to Guardiola's style of play, and that his supporting cast may also need to change.
"If you add a striker to a club, you have to remove someone, and you have to remove them from a team that has won four of the last five league titles, shattering records and scoring goals," the Spaniard continued. One could argue that the mechanism functions well without a striker.
"We need a new system and will have to adjust to it if we play with a striker." While I won't predict that he'll break any records, I will advise that fans must exercise patience.
Anyone joining our team requires time, I say.
Fans of Cock-a-hoop City have one persistent concern: Haaland's injury history. The 6ft 4in hitman missed much of last season with injuries while playing for Borussia Dortmund.
But Soriano emphasized that the team carried out careful checks before initiating the move.
"We looked at this and we are convinced he's fit and he can play at the maximum level," he said on the Dr. Football Podcast. "We've done every medical check we could do and we are confident."
Although City has welcomed many notable players to the Etihad since taking over in Abu Dhabi 14 years ago, many consider Haaland to be the most well-known acquisition to date.
We are obviously very thrilled, but all football decisions and signing decisions are made with an eye on football, not marketing or fame, Soriano continued.
Pep and Txiki Begiristain [City's director of football] give their needs a lot of thought.
"In this instance, he fits the bill of a superstar, but that's not why we signed him; rather, we believe he'll score a lot of goals," the manager said. He can also adjust to our system. But I promise you it's a football decision. It's very sophisticated, and you have to be a sophisticated player to adapt to this — and we think he will. Alfie, a former City midfielder, was also a major factor in Soriano's son's decision to join a new team.
He remarked, "His father, former Manchester City player Alfie Haaland, is very intelligent and understands the Premier League. He gave his son sound advice.
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Erling Haaland hopes to get started quickly, although adaptation may take some time.
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