Erling Haaland believes Gabriel Magalhaes should have been sent off during Arsenal’s match against Manchester City at the weekend.
Erling Haland of Manchester City shakes the hand of Gabriel of Arsenal as Declan Rice looks on before the Premier League match between Manchester City and Arsenal at Etihad Stadium on April 19, 2026 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images)
Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images
Arsenal’s Gabriel Magalhaes and Manchester City’s Erling Haaland were involved in a scrap towards the end of the weekend’s Premier League encounter, with both receiving yellow cards for their roles in it.
Gabriel had gone over the top of Haaland to try and win a header, with the striker shoving the centre-back after getting back to his feet. Haaland then put his head up against Gabriel’s, and the Arsenal defender reacted by pushing his opponent away with his own head.
It wasn’t quite a “headbutt”, despite attempts to describe it that way, as Gabriel didn’t strike Haaland with his head. The two were already in contact before the movement, so it was a push rather than a striking action.
Even so, some have argued that the Arsenal man should have been dismissed, including Haaland himself.
MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 05: Erling Haaland of Manchester City during the Premier League match between Manchester City FC and Fulham FC at Etihad Stadium on October 05, 2024 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Gareth Copley/Getty Images)
Photo by Gareth Copley/Getty Images
“I think that’s a red card,” Haaland said. “If I go down, like any other guy would do, it’s a red card, [but] I will never do this.
“My father taught me to stay on your feet and don’t be a… I cannot say the word, but it begins with a ‘p’. Maybe I should have gone down. Then it would be easier, but I didn’t. I got a yellow card.
“There were a lot of duels, a lot of scratches, if you want to say this. Sometimes my missus is not so happy about this. It looks a bit wrong, you know, but that’s the reality.”
Gabriel of Arsenal celebrates after the team's victory in the Premier League match between Arsenal and Chelsea at Emirates Stadium on March 01, 2026 in London, England. (Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)
Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images
Former ref Dermot Gallagher didn’t agree with that assessment in his appearance on Sky Sports on Monday, arguing that the ref reached a fair outcome by booking both players.
“It’s not the cleverest thing to do,” Gallagher admitted. “He runs a massive risk. But if you look, he actually goes down the front of him, he doesn’t go through him, he doesn’t headbutt him.
“I think it was a very fair outcome, to be honest. I think both of them are aggressive, I think both of them the whole game, it just epitomised what was at stake.”
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