“Pipe down, you nasty piece of work” - Piers Morgan takes aim at Erling Haaland for behavior during Arsenal draw against Manchester City
British broadcaster Piers Morgan has lashed out at Manchester City striker Erling Haaland for his behavior in his side's 2-2 draw against Arsenal at the weekend (September 22). The Norwegian striker had a number of controversial moments during the game against the Gunners, as he scored his 100th goal in a City shirt.
Footage from after the game ended revealed that Haaland had taken swipes at Gunners stars Gabriel, Gabriel Jesus, Myles Lewis-Skelly, and manager Mikel Arteta.
The forward told the manager to "be humble" while patting him on the back before confronting Jesus, who tried to stop him from speaking to the manager. He also asked 17-year-old debutant Lewis-Skelly who he was when he tried to confront him during a scuffle and threw the ball at Gabriel's head.
An Arsenal fan, Morgan took to social media to articulate a response to Erling Haaland for his actions towards the Arsenal players during the game. He described the 23-year-old striker as a "nasty piece of work" and called him "arrogant" and a "coward".
“Humility lectures from the most arrogant player in the league, who nastily belittled 17-year-old Lewis-Skelly, and cowardly hurled a ball at the back of Gabriel’s head. Pipe down. You nasty piece of work.”
Manchester City had gone ahead in the game when Haaland opened the scoring just nine minutes in before Riccardo Calafiori equalized for the Gunners in controversial fashion. Gabriel headed home another to give his side the lead before Leandro Trossard saw a second booking and a red card at the end of the first half.
Pep Guardiola's side looked set to taste defeat in the league for the first time this season until John Stones leveled the scores in added time. The game descended into chaos afterwards, and this continued after referee Michael Oliver blew his whistle for full-time.
Haaland escapes punishment for antics in Arsenal game
Manchester City ace Erling Haaland will face no disciplinary action for his behavior in the game against Arsenal at the weekend. The striker was in the headlines for good and bad reasons, having also scored his tenth league goal in just five appearances.
The Cityzens needed a late goal from John Stones to pick up a point with a 2-2 draw at the Etihad, but what followed was interesting.
With his shirt over his head in exasperation, Gabriel turned away from his goal after the ball went in. In celebration, Haaland picked up the ball from the back of the net before hurling it at the back of Gabriel's head.
League sources have confirmed that the action was checked by the VAR John Brooks and referee Michael Oliver and was found to not be violent conduct. As a result, the striker did not receive a booking or sending-off during the game and the FA will not take any further action.