What caused spat between Erling Haaland and Giovani Lo Celso after Man City 3-3 Tottenham | OneFootball

Highlights

Manchester City's entertaining meeting with Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League ended in controversy after a bizarre decision from referee Simon Hooper sent Pep Guardiola's side into a frenzy. Erling Haaland was particularly furious about the moment and was seen storming off the pitch after the final whistle was blown.

The City striker was also seen losing his cool with Spurs midfielder Giovani Lo Celso and the two men got into a heated argument. They had to be pulled apart as Haaland angrily confronted him towards the touchline. It's unusual to see the Norwegian lose his cool in this manner and it was previously unclear what happened to cause the pair to clash in this manner.

Recent fan footage that has been shared online seems to have cleared that up, though. The duo weren't happy at all with each other and now we know why.

The pair exchanged words as Haaland was leaving the pitch

Incensed by the referee's decision to halt a clear goal-scoring opportunity for a foul on him, Haaland was seen storming off of the pitch at full time and the recent fan footage shows that he barged past Lo Celso, with the two colliding shoulders. The Spurs man can clearly be seen responding verbally.

We don't know what he said, but it ticked the City forward off, as he turned around and stormed back over to him, and they had to be pulled apart by teammates and staff. Emotions were clearly running high after an incredible contest between the two teams and this is the moment that it truly boiled over and led to the two men almost clashing.

Haaland's clash with Lo Celso was likely caused by something the Spurs man said, but it likely wouldn't have occurred if Hooper hadn't made the mind-boggling decision to blow for a foul and halt a City attack, despite offering the club advantage and them making the most of it.

After Haaland was fouled, he quickly got back up to his feet and Hooper allowed the team to play on, playing advantage, and they certainly made the most of it. He quickly floated a ball over the top of the Tottenham defence and Jack Grealish got onto the end of it. The Englishman, who had come off of the bench and already scored one, had burst through the heart of the Spurs back line and had a clear goal-scoring opportunity, one-on-one with Guglielmo Vicario, but that's when the referee decided to go back on his initial decision and blow for a foul.

It was a shocking decision, and one that infuriated the City squad who felt they had been denied a clear goal-scoring opportunity and one that would have almost certainly seen Grealish bag them a winner with just minutes left of the contest. No one really knows what Hooper was thinking in the moment, but it confused everyone.