Erling Haaland belittled Mikel Arteta with a two-word command late in the game after Manchester City’s stunning 2-2 comeback win over Arsenal on Sunday.
The City striker was in a tempestuous mood at the Etihad, flicking the ball onto Gabriel’s head after John Stones’ last-gasp equaliser and appearing to say ‘who the hell are you?’ to Arsenal’s 17-year-old substitute Myles Lewis-Skelly.
City looked lost when David Raya picked up the ball from a corner and fired it long for Kai Havertz to chase down in added time.
But eight minutes from time, John Stones capitalised on a deflection to send the home fans into a frenzy and City remained top of the Premier League table.
Following the events, Haaland’s mischievous spirit did not fade and he approached Arsenal manager Arteta and told him to “stay humble”, patting the Spaniard on the shoulder.
Erling Haaland told Mikel Arteta to ‘stay humble’ after Manchester City’s 2-2 draw with Arsenal
The Manchester City striker was involved in a confrontation with Gabriel after throwing the ball at the back of the defender’s neck.
His behaviour sparked a row between the stars of both teams, and Arsenal were not impressed.
Gabriel Jesus addressed his complaints before Haaland branded him a ‘clown’ and told him to ‘get out of here’
Humility is a virtue, but Arsenal did not take it as good advice. Haaland’s comment only got him into deeper trouble, as former City star Gabriel Jesus confronted him about it.
“Come on, why are you saying that?” the Brazilian asked.
“What were you talking about? I wasn’t talking nonsense, clown,” Haaland replied as he towered over his opponent before pushing him away.
“Do not touch me,” Jesus said.
“What are you talking about? Get away from me, you fucking clown!” was Haaland’s last comment before Jack Grealish stepped between them.
The rivalry has intensified between City and Arsenal over the past two seasons due to their tight battles for the Premier League title.
Haaland clearly feels City, who have won four titles in a row, are still top despite being nearly beaten away from home by Arsenal.
The Norwegian collected a lovely pass from Savinho just nine minutes into Sunday’s final rematch and slotted past David Raya with ease to score his 100th City goal.
Young substitute Myles Lewis-Skelly did not escape Haaland’s condescension, with the striker appearing to say to him: “Who the hell are you?”
Arteta watched as his side blew their lead in the eighth minute of added time.
John Stones (right) scored Manchester City’s equaliser with just seconds remaining in the match.
The defender saved City from what looked like certain defeat against a 10-man Arsenal
Arsenal defenders were left dejected after failing to secure victory against their title rivals.
However, Arsenal did not sit idly by.
Riccardo Calafiori scored a lovely strike to level the scores and Gabriel headed in deep in first-half stoppage time to give the Gunners a lead going into the break, despite Leandro Trossard being sent off on the stroke of half-time.
After the break, the team looked backed into the net and held firm against an increasingly frustrated City side, who managed 33 shots.
They looked to have secured a potentially season-defining victory until City got the ball back into the box from a short corner and Stones found the equaliser.
That was City’s last recorded goal in a Premier League match.
Haaland lit the fuse of fury in response, launching the ball into the back of Gabriel’s head as the Gunners defender wrapped his shirt around his face in lamentation.
Players from both teams ended up in a heated exchange after the agitator’s antics.
Pep Guardiola played down Haaland’s behaviour afterwards, saying: “I think it was emotions and that’s all.”
Erling Haaland tipped the ball past David Raya to score the opening goal of the game
The Norwegian’s goal was his 100th Premier League strike in just his 105th appearance for City.
Arteta focused on the positives: “I’m very proud of the team. We played the game in a difficult context against the best team in the world,” he said.
“It’s a miracle that we played 56 minutes at the Etihad with 10 men. It’s incredible what we did.”
That didn’t stop him from expressing his irritation at Trossard’s dismissal: “It’s so obvious that I don’t need to comment on it,” Arteta said. “It’s the second time.[Now]I expect 100 Premier League games to be played as 10 against 11, or 10 against nine. We’ll see.”
‘I think it’s very obvious what people think about the red card. It’s not my job to come here and judge what happened. My job is to survive in one of the toughest environments in football for 55 minutes and try to do things to survive.
“It’s happened twice in five games now, which is very worrying to see in the top league.”