Erling Haaland labelled 'shameless' after dive of the season contender in friendly against Barcelona
Erling Haaland managed to win a stoppage time penalty for Manchester City during last night's charity game against Barcelona, but his so-called 'dive' in the build-up has been labelled "shameless" by fans.
Two of European football's biggest clubs took part in a six-goal thriller at the Nou Camp on Wednesday in a game held to raise funds for research into Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS).
More than 90,000 fans watched on as former Barcelona goalkeeper and assistant manager Juan Carlos Unzue, who was diagnosed with the incurable neurodegenerative disease in 2020, received a standing ovation.
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All funds raised through ticket sales for the match will go towards aiding ALS research.
An emotional and beautiful message from Juan Carlos Unzué ahead of the game.
— 𝐀𝐅𝐂 𝐀𝐉𝐀𝐗 💎 (@TheEuropeanLad) August 24, 2022
'Enjoy life' indeed.. pic.twitter.com/nlZYnPXGGt
In terms of action on the pitch, Pep Guardiola's side took an early lead in the charity fundraiser through new signing Julian Alvarez.
Barcelona pair Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Frenkie De Jong, who have both been linked with moves to the Premier League this summer, hit back to make it 2-1 before City youngster Cole Palmer levelled the scores with 20 minutes remaining.
Memphis Depay then put Barca ahead with a neat finish from close range. And then this happened.
Dive of the season from Erling Haaland. What. Is. This? pic.twitter.com/n9bLgUorIk
— Sara 🦋 (@SaraFCBi) August 24, 2022
As you can see in the footage above, Erling Haaland was running towards goal in the 97th minute when he tumbled to the ground following minimal contact from former Chelsea defender Andreas Christensen.
Then, to the surprise of many, City were awarded a penalty thanks to Haaland's theatrics and Riyad Mahrez emphatically converted to make it 3-3.
Here's another angle of the incident.
(The Haaland Dive) 😂😭
— Little City (@LittleCity) August 24, 2022
- Mahrez with the penalty though 🔥😮💨⚽️ pic.twitter.com/vCQ2d45fvr
Social media were quick to comment on Haaland's antics during Wednesday night's friendly at the Camp Nou.
One fan commented on the clip, saying: "Btw, that penalty Haaland won is one of the softest penalties I've ever seen. He genuinely took two strides before going down after the lightest touch from Christensen. If this was a competitive match, I'd be fuming."
Another wrote: "Nah that penalty has killed me. Haaland dived then laughed at the defender," while a third said: "Haaland that was so shameless man but I'll take it."
If Neymar dives like this in a friendly everyone loses their mind. But it is Haaland so it doesn’t matter pic.twitter.com/SUmWencuWy
— Wes💯 (@United_Wes) August 24, 2022
Even after the final whistle, Haaland and Christensen were joking about the penalty. Either way, entertaining game and hopefully we raised a lot of money. FairPlay City👊. Those Pep- Xavi photos tho🤩#Barcelona #ManCityBarca
— Mad About Barca (@MadAboutBarca) August 24, 2022
Haaland wtf man that's the most shameless dive I've ever seen 😭
— Fah (@CFC_Fah) August 24, 2022
Thoughts on the decision?
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Topics: Erling Haaland, La Liga, Manchester City, Premier League, Julian Alvarez, FC Barcelona
Jack Kenmare