How son of Man City cult hero is 'creating his own name'

He is the son of a Manchester City cult hero and was named after a club legend.

He played in Norway youth teams with Erling Haaland, whose father also played for City.

But while Haaland shot to stardom, Colin Rosler has had to take a different path to carve out his career.

"Since a young age, I've tried to create my own name," he tells BBC Sport. "I've tried to be my own person and not rely on my dad."

Now 25, the tough-tackling centre-back is finally stepping out of the shadows and making a name for himself.

Over the past seven months Rosler has become a league champion and a full international and, by chance, his old friend Erling was there to share both moments.

A hard-working striker, Uwe Rosler represented East Germany before becoming a fans' favourite at City between 1994 and 1998.

His Norwegian wife later gave birth to two sons and such is Rosler's connection with the club, he named them after City legends Colin Bell and Tony Book.

Colin Rosler was born in Berlin in 2000, before his father played and managed in Norway. After the family moved to England in 2010, the boys would often meet their namesakes at Etihad Stadium.

"It's an honour to be named after such a legend at City," says Colin Rosler.

"I'd always have a laugh about my name with Colin - and my brother with Tony Book - and it was always great to see them and hear more about the club's history."

Perhaps it was inevitable, but Colin "loved City from an early age" so it was a "dream come true" to earn a place in the Blues' academy in 2010.

Colin plays at the opposite end of the pitch to his father, but the City coaches soon noticed one similarity.

"Even as a 10-year-old, I was already an aggressive defender," says Colin. "I just wanted to smash people.

"My mum says all the time that we look the same on the pitch, and I have a similar temperament to him."

And although Colin progressed through the City and Norway age groups, Uwe knew the chance of his son – or any academy product – making it to the first team was very slim.

"I am not sure all of them know it, but my one does," he told BBC Sport in 2013.

"What you get from City is a very good football education and, if you work hard, you can make a living from football elsewhere."

After making five EFL Trophy appearances with City, Colin decided to give that a go, making a permanent exit at 19 rather than going out on loan.

Having been born in Germany before growing up in Norway and England, Colin felt equipped to go it alone overseas, and in August 2019 he joined Dutch side NAC Breda.

"Leaving City wasn't the easiest choice, but it's one I felt I had to make," he says. "It was going to be a culture shock and a new challenge, but I'm good at adapting quickly and learning new things.

"And I learned a huge amount in Holland - living by myself, playing in the first team, not speaking the language.

"You have to go in there, take charge and be the man that you are. I learned quickly that it's all about winning."

He spent the 2022 season with Norwegian side Lillestrom, before joining Mjallby, a Swedish club that is "not as well-known and sort of in the middle of nowhere".

"That was probably the best decision I've made," says Colin. "It came at the right time in my career because I could just focus on football.

"I became a leader, played every game and gained even more experience. Then you feel like you have to make that next step. I wanted to push myself, see what I'm made of, and when you're playing in Sweden and Malmo comes calling, you listen."

Malmo are arguably the biggest club in Scandinavia but had just suffered a mid-season wobble when they signed Rosler last August.

That meant a reunion with Malmo striker Erik Botheim, who came through Norway's youth teams alongside him and Erling Haaland.

Rosler first met Haaland when they played for Norway's Under-15s in 2015 and they had one rare fact in common.

"We talked about that instantly, that we're both Blues and our dads played there," says Rosler.

"I remember we both said that it's our dream to play for City. Obviously he's gone on to do that and it's just incredible to see how well he's done there. He's become an absolute monster."

Botheim and Haaland remain close friends so when Malmo had a chance to clinch the Swedish title last October, Haaland chose to miss the Ballon d'Or ceremony and watch Malmo fight back for a 2-1 win over Gothenburg.

"He almost got more attention than us winning the league!" says Rosler.

"He's got a busy schedule so the fact he made that effort to come here and show his support was fun to see.

"We turned it around in the second half and 10,000 people stormed on to the pitch. It was absolute chaos. To win my first title was something I've been chasing so I'll remember it for the rest of my life."

Rosler then came off the bench for Norway in November and it was Haaland he replaced - nine years after they made their U15s debut together.

"I thought about that actually, that it would be a nice picture," says Rosler.

"We've known each other for so long and, yeah, I made my senior debut a bit later than him, but that's something that's so interesting in football.

"There's no correct way. Everybody has a different path. I've had a lot of challenges in my short career, but I've also had a lot of incredible times.

"To win the league and represent my country, it's something I've worked towards for a very long time, and it was a very proud moment for me and my family."

Rosler remains a regular for Malmo and could win another trophy as they face Hacken in the Swedish Cup final on Thursday (14:00 BST).

He has also been named in Norway's squad for next week's World Cup qualifiers against Italy and Estonia.

And while Rosler has forged his own path, he is "extremely thankful" for his father's advice along the way.

"He's been through the same things so we can talk about them," he adds. "It's something that's maybe given me an advantage over others, but I have to use that."