Alfie Haaland and Manchester City fans alike are eagerly waiting for appeal proceedings to begin.
Manchester City supporters of a certain age will remember Alf-Inge Haaland for his three years in sky blue at the start of the millennium, and for the infamous Roy Keane challenge that ultimately accelerated the end of his career.
To the younger generations of Blues, he is better known as the father of Erling Haaland as the striker continues to rewrite club and league record books.
That familiar voice from City's past has once again weighed in on the turbulent events of the present. With Manchester City found guilty of breaching the Premier League's financial rules and battling to overturn the verdict on appeal, Haaland has urged caution before anyone rushes to judgement.
Speaking to Swedish broadcaster Viaplay , the Premier League's rights holder across much of Northern Europe, the 53-year-old was asked whether he had any inside information on the proceedings - and made it clear he knew no more than the rest of us.
"Nothing. Not more than what's in the media, which is quite a lot," Haaland said. "And very one-sided, I'd say, as it's hard for Manchester City with the appeal to go and defend themselves. I hope they get a fair hearing, and we'll see if they can prove innocence."
As the live nature of the case limits what Manchester City can say publicly, some - now including Haaland - have argued that wider narrative has been left lopsided, with even the exact nature of City's defence strategy still being kept fairly secretive.
In September, Manchester City were found guilty of serious breaches of the Premier League's financial rules across a nine-season period, a ruling they have branded "unsafe".
The club deny any wrongdoing and almost immediately lodged an appeal, pointing to what they call a comprehensive body of "irrefutable evidence" in their favour, with a separate sanctions hearing still to come.
Until that appeal is heard, City's ability to argue their case in the open is still limited - keeping the club in the same limbo it has existed under for much of the last four years.
On the grass, it has been mostly business as usual for new boss Enzo Maresca and his players. Manchester City sit second in the Premier League table after a recent dip in form saw defeats to Aston Villa and Brighton and Hove Albion , but Alf-Inge's son Erling is leading the Premier League Golden Boot race and trip to Leipzig is coming up this week.
With the appeal expected to be heard in the coming months, Manchester City can only hope that more people take Alf-Inge Haaland's advice and wait for the full picture before reaching a verdict of their own.
