Manchester City and Erling Haaland are reported to be in talks over a new contract, but one that will retain a release clause.

Haaland has proven a huge success for City since he arrived at the Etihad Stadium in the summer of 2022. He is currently averaging more than one goal a game in the Premier League, scoring 70 goals in just 69 appearances.

The striker’s contract runs until 2027, though is believed to include a nine-figure release clause potentially worth up to £175m.

Spanish outlet MARCA claim that an agreement between City and Haaland over a fresh deal is ‘not far away’, though they note any new contract will still contain an exit clause.

Haaland’s agent, Rafaela Pimenta, has held several meetings with City officials over the contract. She and the player’s father, former Premier League football Alf-Inge, have both stressed that Haaland should be in control of his own destiny by way of release clauses.

Real Madrid have long been tipped as a destination for Haaland at some point. Following the summer acquisition of Kylian Mbappe on a free transfer from Paris Saint-Germain, they are not currently looking to sign another attacker, but that situation could change in the future.

PSG are the only other team who could realistically pay what is necessary to sign Haaland, but after Mbappe’s departure are moving away from a philosophy of big-money signings and instead are focusing on developing a young team.

Regardless, Haaland is happy at City, who are hopeful he will be the face of their project for years to come. Manager Pep Guardiola’s contract is up in 2025 and his future is undecided, but he has given his approval to the club to tie Haaland down as long as possible.

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