Wikipedia

Alf-Inge Haaland

Alf-Inge "Alfie" Haaland (born Alf-Inge Rasdal Håland; 23 November 1972) is a Norwegian former professional footballer who played as a right-back or midfielder. Haaland played in the Premier League with Nottingham Forest, Leeds United and Manchester City, and won 34 caps for Norway.

Alf-Inge Haaland
Personal information
Full name Alf-Inge Haaland
Birth name Alf-Inge Rasdal Håland
Date of birth (1972-11-23) 23 November 1972 (age 52)
Place of birth Stavanger, Norway
Height 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in)[1]
Position(s) Right-back, midfielder[2]
Youth career
1979–1989 Bryne
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1989–1993 Bryne
1993–1997 Nottingham Forest 75 (7)
1997–2000 Leeds United 74 (8)
2000–2003 Manchester City 38 (3)
2007–2008 Bryne/Rosseland 3 (0)
2011 Bryne 3 1 (0)
2012–2013 Rosseland 6 (1)
Total 197 (19)
International career
1990 Norway U17 1 (0)
1991–1993 Norway U21 29 (3)
1994–2001 Norway 34 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Haaland joined the youth academy of his hometown club Bryne in 1979 and made his first-team debut in 1989 aged 17. He signed his first professional contract with the club a year later. Haaland then moved to Premier League club Nottingham Forest in December 1993. After a four-year spell at the club, he moved to Leeds United. He was part of the Leeds team that reached the semi-final of the UEFA Cup and qualified for the UEFA Champions League. Haaland then proceeded to make his final transfer to Manchester City. In the same year, Haaland took an eight-year break before returning to Bryne's third team and ending his career in 2013 with Rosseland.

Club career

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Early life and career

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[3] He was born Alf-Inge Rasdal Håland[4] on 23 November 1972[1] in Stavanger, and was raised in nearby Bryne.[5] He joined the youth team of his hometown club Bryne in 1979.[6] He made his first-team debut in 1989, aged 17,[5] and established himself in the team the following year[5] after signing his first professional contract with Bryne.[6]

Nottingham Forest

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Haaland moved to England, joining First Division club Nottingham Forest after a protracted transfer. Attempts to sign Haaland started with Brian Clough in October 1992 but was completed under the management of Frank Clark in December 1993.[7] He made his debut for Forest against Leicester City.[8]

Leeds United

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In July 1997, Haaland joined Leeds United under George Graham. He made his Leeds debut against Arsenal on 9 August. In September, when Manchester United were losing 1–0 to Haaland's Leeds United at Elland Road, Roy Keane injured his anterior cruciate ligament running for the ball with Haaland. As Keane lay prone on the ground, Haaland, unaware of the seriousness of the injury, stood over him and criticised Keane, suggesting that he was merely feigning injury to try to gain a penalty.[9] Haaland was booked as Keane was stretchered off the field and was out of action for nearly a year afterward. On 26 December 1997, Haaland scored a goal in a 3–1 defeat to Liverpool at Anfield,[10] a feat later achieved by his son, Erling Haaland, on 2 October 2019 while playing for Red Bull Salzburg.[11]

He was part of the Leeds team which reached the UEFA Cup semi-finals during the 1999–2000 season and which also qualified for the Champions League. Haaland was mainly used as a utility player, playing in both midfield and defence under David O'Leary.[citation needed]

Manchester City

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In 2000, Haaland left Leeds to join Manchester City for a fee of £2.5 million.[12][13] In April 2001, during a match against Manchester United, Roy Keane tackled Haaland, kicking him high on his right knee, for which he was immediately sent off. Of the incident, Haaland said: "I'm only glad my leg was off the ground, otherwise he would have done me a lot of damage".[14] Keane was subsequently fined £5,000 and received a three-match ban. In his autobiography, published a year later, Keane stated that the tackle was a pre-meditated, deliberate act of vengeance against Haaland for the on-field criticism he received from him three and a half years previously. After this revelation, Keane found himself subject to an FA inquiry. He claimed inaccurate paraphrasing by his ghostwriter but received an additional five-game ban and a £150,000 fine for bringing the sport into disrepute.[15][16] Following the tackle, Haaland had initially claimed Keane would not dare to look him in the eye, and he once said: "I really dislike [Manchester] United and I can't stand their players".[17]

At the time of Keane's tackle, Haaland's left knee was already giving him sufficient problems for him to have to play with strapping around it.[citation needed] After the tackle, Haaland finished the match and played a midweek friendly for Norway coming off at half-time,[18] and the next league game, coming off in the 68th minute.[19] That summer, he underwent surgery on his left knee but only managed a further four substitute appearances the following season,[20] and finally retired in July 2003 after failing to recover full fitness. Haaland was originally contracted with Manchester City until the end of the 2004–05 season, but in his contract, it was stated that City could terminate the contract if medical conditions indicated that he could not play first-team football again, and decided to use this option.[21]

Following the release of Keane's autobiography in 2002, Haaland and Manchester City stated that they were considering taking legal action against Keane. However, it emerged that Haaland had stated on his website that he had been playing with the injury to his left knee for a few months, that his left leg did not receive a knock in the game (Keane kicked his right thigh), and that Keane did not cause his long term injury.[22][23][24] Legal action was dropped in February 2003 after the club reviewed the medical advice.[25]

Rosseland

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Haaland came out of retirement after eight years, to play for the Bryne-based club Rosseland in the Norwegian Third Division in August 2011.[26] He retired for the final time in 2013.[27]

International career

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Haaland made his debut for Norway in a friendly match against Costa Rica in January 1994. He was later named in Norway's squad for the 1994 FIFA World Cup where he played the matches against Mexico and Italy. Haaland was capped a total of 34 times, with his last international appearance against Bulgaria in April 2001.[28] Haaland is – along with Hallvar Thoresen, Dan Eggen, Espen Baardsen, Hans Herman Henriksen and Joshua King – among the few players to have played for the Norwegian national team without ever playing in the domestic top division.[21]

Personal life

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Haaland met Gry Marita Braut, an accomplished Norwegian heptathlon athlete,[29] in the mid-1990s while he was in England playing for Nottingham Forest.[30]

They were married and had three children, Astor, Gabrielle, and Erling Haaland.[31] Astor is a finance student at the BI Norwegian Business School, Gabrielle is a medical associate, while Erling became a professional footballer like his father. Erling plays for Manchester City, a club which Alfie also played for.[32] Alfie's nephew, Albert Tjåland, is also a professional footballer, a striker who last played for Molde.[33] After his divorce from Gry Marita, Haaland married Anita Strømsvol and they have two daughters, Sofie Haaland and Nora Haaland. [34]

Career statistics

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Club

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Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup[a] League cup[b] Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Nottingham Forest 1993–94[35] First Division 3 0 0 0 0 0 — 3 0
1994–95[35] Premier League 20 1 1 0 1 0 — 22 1
1995–96[35] Premier League 17 0 2 0 0 0 5[c] 0 24 0
1996–97[36] Premier League 35 6 3 0 3 0 — 41 6
Total 75 7 6 0 4 0 5 0 90 7
Leeds United 1997–98[37] Premier League 32 7 2 0 3 0 — 37 7
1998–99[38] Premier League 29 1 4 0 0 0 3[c] 0 36 1
1999–2000[39] Premier League 13 0 0 0 0 0 6[c] 0 19 0
Total 74 8 6 0 3 0 9 0 92 8
Manchester City 2000–01[40] Premier League 35 3 3 0 5 0 — 43 3
2001–02[41] First Division 3 0 1 0 0 0 — 4 0
2002–03[42] Premier League 0 0 0 0 0 0 — 0 0
Total 38 3 4 0 5 0 — 47 3
Bryne/Rosseland 2007[3] Norwegian Seventh Division 1 0 — — — 1 0
2008[3] Norwegian Sixth Division 2 0 — — — 2 0
Total 3 0 — — — 3 0
Bryne 3 2011[3] Norwegian Fifth Division 1 0 — — — 1 0
Rosseland 2012[3] Norwegian Fourth Division 4 1 3 0 — — 7 1
2013[3] Norwegian Fourth Division 2 0 0 0 — — 2 0
Total 6 1 3 0 — — 9 1
Career total 197 19 19 0 12 0 14 0 242 19
  1. ^ Includes FA Cup, Norwegian Football Cup
  2. ^ Includes Football League Cup
  3. ^ a b c Appearances in UEFA Cup

International

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Appearances and goals by national team and year[3]
National team Year Apps Goals
Norway 1994 5 0
1995 8 0
1996 7 0
1997 5 0
1998 6 0
1999 2 0
2001 1 0
Total 34 0

References

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  1. ^ a b "Alf Inge Haaland: Overview". Premier League. Retrieved 3 April 2022.
  2. ^ "Alf-Inge Haaland". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 3 April 2022.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g "Alfie Haaland: Statistikk" [Alfie Haaland: Statistics] (in Norwegian). Norwegian Football Federation. Retrieved 14 September 2024.
  4. ^ "Formuetoppen i Time" [Fortune in Time]. Stavanger Aftenblad (in Norwegian). 6 October 2006. Retrieved 3 April 2022.
  5. ^ a b c "1972–1994: The Early Years". Icons.com. Archived from the original on 26 March 2007.
  6. ^ a b "Erling Haaland: Die Karriere des jungen Stürmer-Stars des BVB" [Erling Haaland: The career of BVB's young star striker]. WA.de (in German). 23 July 2020. Retrieved 3 April 2022.
  7. ^ "Football: How Fenton received pounds 45.000 after Haaland's move to Forest". The Independent. London. 19 September 1997. Retrieved 3 April 2022.
  8. ^ English, A. S. (6 April 2021). "Looking back at Alf-Inge Haaland's Man City career". Diario AS. Retrieved 9 September 2022.
  9. ^ Jimmy Greaves (2008). Football's Great Heroes and Entertainers: The History of Football through its biggest heroes. Hachette UK. ISBN 9781444718157.
  10. ^ "Liverpool 3–1 Leeds United". lfchistory.net.
  11. ^ "My father always says he scored at Anfield... now, so have I". The 42.ie. 3 October 2019.
  12. ^ "Alf-Inge Haaland". Leeds United A.F.C. 3 December 2003. Archived from the original on 3 July 2018. Retrieved 15 June 2019.
  13. ^ "Haaland signs for Man City". BBC Sport. Retrieved 15 June 2019.
  14. ^ "Keane heads trio in the dock". BBC Sport. 22 April 2001.
  15. ^ Brodkin, Jon (5 September 2002). "Keane charged with two counts of misconduct".
  16. ^ Whittell, Ian (15 October 2002). "Keane fined and banned". The Guardian.
  17. ^ "United deny Keane depression claims". Irish Independent. 24 November 2012.
  18. ^ "Friendlies: Norway vs. Bulgaria". footballdatabase.eu.
  19. ^ "Premier League 00/01 / Man City vs West Ham". Archived from the original on 17 July 2012.
  20. ^ Taylor, Daniel (16 August 2002). "Stakes raised in football's grudge match". The Guardian.
  21. ^ a b Aarre, Eivind (13 February 2003). "City sa opp Håland" (in Norwegian). Stavanger Aftenblad. Archived from the original on 22 February 2013. Retrieved 9 January 2013.
  22. ^ "Haaland admission could wreck case". London Evening Standard. 19 August 2002.
  23. ^ "Keane plans defence". BBC Sport. 5 September 2002.
  24. ^ "Cole earns 'conman' tag". BBC Sport. 19 August 2002.
  25. ^ "Keane escapes legal action". BBC Sport. 13 February 2003.
  26. ^ "Håland til Rosseland" (in Norwegian). Jærbladet. 26 August 2011. Archived from the original on 3 July 2018. Retrieved 20 August 2012.
  27. ^ McCarry, Patrick (27 January 2023). "Roy Keane blanched at Haaland observation during Tommy Tiernan appearance". Sports Joe. Ireland. Retrieved 26 April 2023.
  28. ^ Søfting, Thomas. "Alf Inge Håland". RSSSF Norway. Archived from the original on 26 July 2010. Retrieved 9 January 2013.
  29. ^ Banerjee, Ritabrata (17 October 2022). "A world record holder at 5 - Ten unknown facts about Manchester City forward Erling Haaland". Goal. Retrieved 26 April 2023.
  30. ^ "Gry Marita Braut: Erling Haaland's Mother?". Sports Chunk. 18 January 2023. Retrieved 26 April 2023.
  31. ^ Singh, Ayush (11 May 2022). "The Tragic Story of Alfie Haaland – The Father of Goal Machine Erling Haaland". Sports Manor. Retrieved 26 April 2023.
  32. ^ "Erling Haaland: Manchester City complete signing of Norwegian striker from Borussia Dortmund". BBC Sport. 13 June 2022. Retrieved 13 June 2022.
  33. ^ "Albert (16) har tilbud fra Bryne, men vet ikke hvor han spiller fotball til høsten". Jærbladet (in Norwegian). 12 May 2020.
  34. ^ Dawson, Jack (28 October 2022). "Who is Alfie Haaland, Erling Haaland's father? biography and facts". Chester Times. Retrieved 26 April 2023.
  35. ^ a b c "Player Details: Alf-Inge Haaland". English National Football Archive. Retrieved 3 April 2022.
  36. ^ "Games played by Alf-Inge Haaland in 1996/1997". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 3 April 2022.
  37. ^ "Games played by Alf-Inge Haaland in 1997/1998". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 3 April 2022.
  38. ^ "Games played by Alf-Inge Haaland in 1998/1999". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 3 April 2022.
  39. ^ "Games played by Alf-Inge Haaland in 1999/2000". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 3 April 2022.
  40. ^ "Games played by Alf-Inge Haaland in 2000/2001". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 3 April 2022.
  41. ^ "Games played by Alf-Inge Haaland in 2001/2002". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 3 April 2022.
  42. ^ "Games played by Alf-Inge Haaland in 2002/2003". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 3 April 2022.
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