Manchester City striker Erling Haaland will not feature in the club’s upcoming Carabao Cup tie against Watford.
Haaland, who netted his 10th Premier League goal of the season during Sunday’s heated 2-2 draw against Arsenal at the Etihad, has been granted compassionate leave following the death of a close family friend.
Ivar Eggja, often referred to as Haaland’s “uncle,” was the best man at his father’s wedding and a long-time confidant.
Eggja passed away earlier this month at the age of 59, and his funeral is scheduled for this week.
Haaland has returned to Norway to attend the service, ruling him out of Tuesday night’s match.
Despite being offered time off after Eggja’s passing, Haaland remained with the squad for key fixtures, including Premier League games against Brentford and Arsenal, as well as the Champions League clash with Inter Milan.
He is, however, expected to be available for City’s Premier League match against Newcastle United at St James’ Park on Saturday.
There was also speculation over whether Haaland would face any disciplinary action following the controversial events during Sunday’s game against Arsenal.
After John Stones’ dramatic 98th-minute equaliser, Haaland was involved in several heated exchanges.
He launched the ball at Gabriel Magalhães’ head in frustration and later clashed with Thomas Partey, barging him as Arsenal attempted a quick restart.
Post-match tensions flared further when Haaland confronted Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta and former City teammate Gabriel Jesus, sarcastically telling Arteta to “stay humble” while also directing expletives towards Jesus.
The Premier League has since confirmed that there will be no retrospective punishment for Haaland or any other players involved.
VAR reviewed the incident where Haaland threw the ball at Gabriel but determined that it did not meet the threshold for intervention.
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