Emmanuel Petit says Roy Keane picking on Erling Haaland has gone too far and has urged the former midfielder to make up with the player’s father.
♦ Keane heavily criticised Haaland
♦ Has a bad relationship with Alfie, his father
♦ Told to finally end feud and move on
WHAT HAPPENED?
Keane compared Haaland’s all-round gameto that of a League Two player last month and has since doubled down on his statement despite the Manchester City star scoring seven goals in his last five games. Petit has called the Irishman out on his comments and believes he is now crossing the line by picking on the Norwegian international.
WHAT EMMANUEL PETIT SAID
Speaking on behalf of Grosvenor Sport, Petit said: “Of course, there is bad blood between Haaland and Keane. It’s a projection of what happened between Keane and his father after he broke his legs. I think Keane has no regrets and said he’d do it again. Keane is going too far with his criticism of Erling, though.
“Keane is going way too far and creating bad energy with Haaland, always picking on him. He needs to get over it and I hope he forgives his father, but don’t be so hard on his son because he’s been amazing since he signed for City.”
DID YOU KNOW?
Keane and Alfie Haaland’s relationship is fractured due to an incident on the pitch in 2001 that saw the former Manchester United man break his rival’s leg while he was playing for City. Haaland could never properly recover from the incident and had to retire at 30 because of the tackle. To make matters worse, Keane stood over Haaland and taunted him while he was in agony.
WHAT NEXT FOR HAALAND AND CITY?
Haaland has already admitted that he does not care about Keane or his comments and he will have another chance to prove the pundit wrong when City travel to Fulham on Saturday. The Premier League champions have three games left and maximum points will ensure they win the title for the fourth consecutive season. Haaland is also on track to retain the Golden Boot having bagged 25 goals.