Off-field habits of Man City striker Erling Haaland branded ‘a bit sick’ as Liverpool star Dominik Szoboszlai admits to shunning odd advice from former team-mate

Manchester City sensation Haaland has revealed on a regular basis that he does not follow established rules when it comes to his lifestyle away from the pitch. The 23-year-old frontman – who hit 52 goals last season and finished as runner-up in the 2023 Ballon d’Or poll – has admitted to enjoying an odd diet while also wearing special glasses and taping his mouth shut in a bid to get better sleep.

Szoboszlai, who is now in the Premier League at Liverpool, experienced Haaland’s unusual behaviour up close during their time together at Red Bull Salzburg and has told Fodball of how the larger-than-life Norway international breaks the mould: “When we played in Salzburg I meditated with [Haaland] two or three times because we were in the same room and at first I looked stupid and then I got in. He had a pair of glasses that he wore, and I used them for a while because he said they would make me sleep better and sleepy faster, but if I had, I would wear them now. It didn't help me, but maybe it's because I didn't believe in them as much as he did, but that's everyone's own business. He does a lot of things that people probably don't know, but I've been to his apartment. The guy is a bit sick.”

Hungarian midfielder Szoboszlai is now looking to take inspiration from Mohamed Salah at Anfield, with the Egyptian superstar proving to be a better role model. He added: “I talked to [Salah] a lot because I was interested in how he saw things. He didn't do [meditation] until he was about 28 years old, then he decided not to eat pasta, bread, basically he doesn't drink alcohol. He's been doing this since then, and if there's training at noon, he's already in the gym at 10.30. I don't judge anyone, everyone can do whatever they want.”

Szoboszlai has made a positive impact at Liverpool on the back of his 2023 transfer to England, while Haaland has hit 13 goals through 16 appearances for City this season – but he did pick up a knock during his latest Premier League outing against Bournemouth.