Erling Haaland ‘blocked’ from ripping up Man City contract as £500k-a-week salary could be slashed

Haaland has been linked with Arsenal and Barcelona since the guilty verdict was made public last week.

Erling Haaland could be blocked from ripping up his Manchester City contract despite previous reports that he could do so following the club being found guilty of 114 of the 115 charges brought against them by the Premier League, mostly relating to financial breaches between 2009 and 2018.

After an independent commission review, City were found guilty of the majority of the charges and were found to have used what the Premier League described as “sham” contracts to inflate revenue figures and reduce costs.

According to the Premier League, City were found to have arranged disguised funding schemes worth more than £830million with commercial partners.

READ MORE: FA release statement over Manchester City FFP case with warning over 'integrity of the game'

The commission also found City guilty of all but one of the charges relating to non-cooperation with the league’s investigation, saying that “a number of important club witnesses gave false evidence in key respects and that some knowingly gave untrue and dishonest evidence”.

While supporters are no doubt worried for the future of their football club, City’s star players are also likely to be asking their agents about what the future could hold.

Haaland has already been linked with Barcelona and Arsenal, while key stars Enzo Fernandez, Elliot Anderson and Gianluigi Donnarumma are among those who would likely move on should City be handed a harsh punishment such as a huge points deduction, which could lead to relegation.

Speaking on the Stick to Football podcast earlier this week, KC Paul Gilroy suggested that Haaland and City’s players could terminate their deals and move on for free if they could prove the club had lied to them over the breaches.

Gilroy said: “Now, a player could say 'You have breached the implied term of trust and confidence. You are my employer, you have acted in breach of that term, and that entitles me to say I'm ripping up my contract and I'm walking out.'

“That is a possibility; I've seen commentators saying unlikely, but it depends on so many things. What's the club going to say to the players? How do they sort it out financially? Etc, etc. But arguably, it's certainly a possibility.”

However, sports lawyer Dan Chapman, managing partner and head of sports law at Leathes Prior, has told TEAMtalk that relegation would not necessarily give City’s players the automatic right to terminate their deals, meaning Haaland and co could find it difficult to leave.

“If City were relegated at the end of this or a subsequent season as a consequence of a points deduction imposed by the Commission, it does not follow that by virtue of that players will be able to walk away from the club and their contracts,” he said.

“Whilst it is possible for any player to have negotiated a relegation release clause, those clauses are quite unusual and clubs would only in very exceptional circumstances have agreed to them.”

And that’s not all, as relegation could see City’s highest earners suffer a significant wage cut, with Haaland currently pocketing £500,000 per week.

Chapman added: “What is more common, in fact, is that the contracts will expressly provide for a lower salary to be paid to the player following a relegation.

“Is it possible that players who signed for City this summer, or signed new contracts recently, were advised by those representing them that the forthcoming decision of the Commission could potentially result in a relegation and as such protection was required for that player?

“We just do not know, but the point is that unless an express relegation release clause was negotiated, for it is certainly not a standard clause, it will not be an automatic option available to City players.”

READ MORE: Unai Emery becomes first Premier League manager to speak out on Man City FFP verdict

City, who yesterday (October 2) confirmed they had lodged an appeal on October 1, deny any wrongdoing and say they have a “comprehensive body of irrefutable evidence that exists” to support their position.

“Manchester City Football Club can confirm that at 7pm on Thursday 1st October 2026 the Club lodged its comprehensive Appeal against the opinion of the Premier League Commission, in relation to the Premier League disciplinary matter,” City said in a statement.

“The Club’s firm position is that, on multiple grounds, the opinion contains clear material errors, of law, principle and fact and is unsafe.

“The Club is innocent of the accusations made by the Premier League and a comprehensive body of irrefutable evidence exists in support of all of its positions, relating to this case.

“We will continue to respect due process and are necessarily restricted in what we can say further until all proceedings are complete.”

If the guilty verdict is upheld, potential punishments include suspension from playing in the league, points deductions, replaying of matches, expulsion from the league, being ordered to pay compensation to other clubs, automatic relegation and even the stripping of titles.

Also on Friday, reports emerged suggesting the UAE had threatened to pull investment from the UK in a warning to Prime Minister Andy Burnham.

City are owned by Abu Dhabi United Group (ADUG), with the group owned by Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

Sheikh Mansour is currently vice president and deputy prime minister of the UAE, as well as a minister of the president's court and a member of the ruling family of Abu Dhabi.

READ MORE: Troy Deeney's verdict on Man City punishment is causing huge controversy after guilty ruling

Topics: Man City, Football News, Erling Haaland

Luke has covered sport – including football, MMA, cricket, and boxing – for SPORTbible since 2024, having previously freelanced at Reach and JOE. When he isn't writing for SPORTbible, he's following Everton home and away. Luke also created and hosted a podcast interviewing guests from singers and bands to footballers and boxers.

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City have appealed after being found guilty of all charges relating to serious breaches of the Premier League's financial regulations.

City have already confirmed that they appealed against the guilty verdict.