Could Erling Braut Haaland be on the Move Again in the Summer?
It is quite possible to think that Erling Braut Haaland could only spend six months in Germany with Borussia Dortmund after signing for the Bundesliga outfit in late December. The 19-year-old has been averaging over a goal per game this season and is turning it on both domestically and on the continent. There probably isn’t a player in the world with more suitors at this moment in time, which does leave you wondering whether the teenager’s time in Dortmund is over before it even began?
That’s the way a lot of people will see it after his performance against PSG in the 2019/20 Champions League, where he grabbed a brilliant brace and helped Dortmund win 2-1. There had been rumors of Haaland’s prowess in front of goal before that game, but truth be told, not many people had seen the youngster in action over the course of 90 minutes before the round of 16 ties kicked off.
That didn’t matter though, because it only took the sound of the back of the net rattling after his piledriver in the second half to know that this kid is absolutely the real deal. When the day comes where people eventually look back on the career of Haaland, they will talk about that goal at the Westfalenstadion and how it shook the ground of world football.
European debut for @BVB ✅
Match-winning performance ✅ @ErlingHaaland = #UCLMOTM ???? pic.twitter.com/RiofzJhOpz
— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) February 22, 2020
Those same tremors would have been felt in London, Manchester, Madrid, Barcelona, and Turin. It takes a lot for the ground that the European giants stand on to tremble, but Haaland has managed to do just that and there should now be a stampede for his signature.
Currently, you can’t ignore the murmurs coming out of the Bernabeu, and it doesn’t take much imagination to figure out why Real Madrid would be desperate to bring in the world’s next great striker given their lack of goals. Los Blancos currently trail Barcelona by close to 20 goals this season, and that could cost them the La Liga title, even if they are at only 6/5 to stop the Catalan charge in the football betting. Replacing Karim Benzema has long been at the top of the agenda at Real Madrid, and Haaland provides an option that will get the entire club rocking with excitement. The next Galactico, if you will.
Madrid will obviously face stiff competition from a few clubs in the Premier League with Manchester United reportedly having lined up an £85m offer for the player at the back end of 2019. It is, however, hard to see Haaland going to Manchester United after the controversy with his father Alf-Inge Haaland and Roy Keane. Wounds like that don’t ever really heal, and now that most big clubs in the race for Haaland can match Manchester United’s paying power, there should be no need to bury the hatchet in the pursuit of more money.
Man City may be in with a shout but have more than enough firepower upfront with Sergio Aguero and Gabriel Jesus. In any case, Pep Guardiola will be looking to strengthen at the other end of the park after a shambolic defense cost City the chance to win three Premier League titles in a row.
As for the big London clubs, it’s all a bit of a struggle to attract the world’s best players at the moment for them, given that they are some way off the pace nowadays in terms of qualifying for the Champions League, and even winning the Premier League.
Across the Channel and over towards northern Italy, Juve may well like the look of Haaland, but after splashing £100m on Ronaldo a couple of seasons ago, it becomes unclear as to where they would now find the money for the Norweigan and still fall in line with Financial Fair Play rules. The same applies to Barcelona after they signed Griezmann for $135m in July 2019.
Goal number 4️⃣0️⃣ for the season for Erling Braut Haaland!
It’s still February! pic.twitter.com/w7tJqJFT2C
— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) February 22, 2020
There seems to be only one other plausible destination for Haaland apart from Real Madrid, and that is Leeds United. Before you spit out your tea, keep in mind that Haaland was born in the city and has expressed his desire to play for Leeds. With Leeds on course for promotion to the Premier League and with whispers getting louder every day that QSI, owners of PSG are in to buy the West Yorkshire club, you can all of a sudden see how the move would be financed.
As previously stated, the options for the young man are vast with the world his oyster, but as for where will he end up? That’s not as easy to answer. However, it does feel like he won’t start the 2020/2021 season in the Bundesliga.
