Haaland admitted that Man City scored offside
"I think that situation was offside," Haaland told beIN SPORTS after the win at the Etihad. "I feel sorry for Fulham. I would also be angry if the same situation happened to Man City. It must be a terrible feeling."
In the first half's injury time, Phil Foden took a corner kick for Ake to hit the ground diagonally into Fulham's net. The away team reacted fiercely, claiming that Manuel Akanji was standing in an offside position and covering his eyes, putting goalkeeper Bernd Leno at a disadvantage. But referee Michael Oliver still recognized the goal for the defending champion team.
After entering the game, VAR confirmed that Akanji was offside but did not cover Leno's eyes and did not touch the ball with his foot. Therefore, the referee upheld the decision. Outside the touchline, coach Marco Silva reacted violently. Fulham players looked angry as they entered the tunnel at half-time.
"That moment made a huge impact," Silva said after the match. "All football players, with some knowledge of football, know that the situation was offside. Recognizing the goal is unacceptable. The referees did not deny the goal, which made us feel concerned".
Fulham captain Tim Ream said Ake's goal was the turning point of this match. "You never want to lose a game like that," the American defender expressed. "We played well in the first half and had a much below average second half. We couldn't keep our intensity in the second half and lost."
On Soccer Saturday, former referee Mike Dean claimed Ake's goal should have been ruled out for offside. According to him, even though Akanji jumped to avoid the ball, goalkeeper Leno had to wait to see if the Man City defender touched the ball or not and when he jumped, it was too late.
This match, Man City dominated and opened the score in the 31st minute thanks to Julian Alvarez. Two minutes later, Ream kicked into the empty net to equalize the score for Fulham. But Ake's controversial situation put the host ahead. In the second half, Haaland shined with a hat-trick, helping Man City win, achieving 12 absolute points in four matches and taking the top spot.
This is Haaland's fifth hat-trick in the Premier League, equaling the achievements of Robin Van Persie and Ruud Van Nistelrooy, and standing above many other former players such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Didier Drogba, Frank Lampard, Nicolas Anelka, Emmanuel Adebayor (all three times). Haaland also became the fastest player to contribute to 50 goals in Premier League history, with 42 self-scored goals and nine assists in 39 matches.
"Don't worry. I'm back," the 23-year-old striker said after ending a series of four unsuccessful matches at Etihad Stadium. "We're only going to get better and City's start has been phenomenal. It's a new season and I'm ready."
After a two-week break, making room for the national teams to gather, Man City will be a guest of West Ham in round five of the Premier League on September 16. Three days later they returned home to host Red Star Belgrade in the opening match of the Champions League group stage.
