Transfers: All 10 of Erling Haalands options scrutinised ahead of summer window – Daily Mail

There are few players drumming up as much transfer interest right now as Erling Haaland. In fact, it’s a challenge to even come up with a rival. 

The 20-year-old striker has proven a phenomenon since breaking into Red Bull Salzburg’s side and he has only improved further since switching to Borussia Dortmund.

With influential agent Mino Raiola in his corner, ambition is rocketing and there appears to be 10 potential destinations for when – not if – Haaland leaves the Westfalenstadion. 

German outlet BILD revealed the 10 sides, which include Chelsea, Manchester United, Liverpool and Manchester City, in the frame for a player that is viewed widely as a future Ballon d’Or winner, competing for the biggest prizes with Paris Saint-Germain’s Kylian Mbappe.

Haaland has scored 27 goals across all competitions so far this term and is looking to fire Dortmund to Champions League glory as they stand on the cusp of a quarter-final spot. 

Here Sportsmail looks at all 10 sides, assesses where Haaland fits – and doesn’t – and whether they really need him this summer…

Chelsea 

One of the frontrunners for his signature it seems. 

Thomas Tuchel certainly knows the Bundesliga like the back of his hand and the former Dortmund boss may well look to bend some burned bridges following an acrimonious exit in order to steal a march in pursuit of Haaland.

Chelsea raided the Bundesliga for RB Leipzig’s Timo Werner last summer to the tune of £53million but he has continued to disappointment and fall well short of expectations.

Tuchel arrived mid-season to salvage a top four bid but next season his eyes will be fixed on a title and for that he needs a reliable scorer to lead his attack. Right now it is unclear if Werner can be the ‘go-to’ guy. 

Details in BILD on Friday revealed Chelsea are right in the hunt for Haaland and owner Roman Abramovich has given his permission for a move worth more than €100million (£87m) this summer.    

Abramovich’s fortune means the Stamford Bridge club can easily afford the striker when other top sides have to be wary of overspending with finances so badly hit by the coronavirus pandemic.  

But it also raises questions for the future of Werner and whether Haaland is seen as a partner, or a replacement, after just one season in Chelsea blue. 

Odds: 10/1 (odds via Betfair) 

Liverpool  

If this miserable season has showed Liverpool anything it is that they need reinforcements to improve depth when injuries pile up.

They have had it worse than most losing so many key players but their famed front three of Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino and Mohamed Salah have not been able to paper over the cracks. 

Jurgen Klopp is another with links to Dortmund and will be confident he can sweet-talk his old bosses to strike a deal if Haaland is keen on a move to Anfield.

Any hopes would likely hinge on qualifying for next season’s Champions League – something that is less-than-certain for Liverpool right now as they sit five points adrift of the top four. 

Klopp showed he knows when to make a game-changing signing – look at the impact of Alisson Becker and Virgil van Dijk – and Haaland could freshen up an attack to launch a title bid next season.

Opportunities to sign Haaland will not come around often and with Mane (28), Salah (28) and Firmino (29) not getting any younger this could be a sliding doors moment for how Klopp evolves this side back into title winners.

Odds: 16/1

Man City  

Even as Man City continue to produce record numbers and sweep all before them, they are not a perfectly constructed squad.

They are fortunate that Sergio Aguero’s absence has not been felt more with the Argentine absent for large chunks of this season.

And given the 180-goal Premier League scorer is out of contract at the end of the season, a new centre forward will be Pep Guardiola’s No 1 priority come the summer, even with another title set to be added to their collection this season. 

Earlier this month the Mirror reported that City are ready to make a £100m bid for Haaland this summer despite the fact a clause in his contract will make him available for £66m in the summer of 2022.

Guardiola is said to be unwilling to wait and is desperate to land the man he sees as the ideal replacement for Aguero.

On paper it would be a dream fit with Haaland getting an abundance of chances and can you imagine Kevin De Bruyne threading balls through for the lethal 20-year-old?

Alf-Inge Haaland, Erling’s dad, played for City in his career and there would be plenty of family fondness should Haaland Jnr wind up at the Etihad. 

But issues arise with City’s reported interest in Lionel Messi and Inter’s Romelu Lukaku.

Messi appears to have limited landing spots if he walks away from Barcelona this summer but a reunion with Guardiola at City is viewed as one of them. 

If emotion takes hold and City prioritise Messi it is unlikely they will also be able to produce the finances needed to then go and acquire Haaland. 

As attractive as the six-time Ballon d’Or winner would be it is Haaland that is the one they should go all-in for.  

Odds: 7/4

Man United 

The one that got away for many United fans.

Haaland worked under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer at Molde and it seemed likely that he would be able to talk his protege into a switch to Old Trafford – only for him to end up in Dortmund.  

Solskjaer said this week that he still keeps in touch with Haaland as Manchester United continue to be linked with the rising star. 

‘I think when you have had kids and players through as a coach you follow them,’ Solskjaer said when asked about Haaland’s current form.

‘I keep in touch with Erling – it is great to see him become the player he has become.

‘He is a Dortmund player and we wish him well there. Let’s see what life will bring later on.’ 

United’s focus appeared to be on Haaland’s Dortmund team-mate Jadon Sancho last summer but Mason Greenwood’s development looks to have stunted that pursuit. 

Centre forward is a key area for United now, as it is for many sides, with Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial both appearing more impactful wide on the left and not through the middle. 

The big stumbling for United is their unwillingness to work too closely with Raiola, who Solskjaer engaged in a public spat with over the future of Paul Pogba earlier this season.

The reason they missed out on Haaland in the first place came down to Raiola’s insistence of a release clause going into his contract. 

Haaland knows Solskjaer and would be a perfect fit for the manager’s desire for a young, mobile, free-flowing attack. But to get to Haaland, United will have to go through Raiola and that is easier said than done.  

Odds: 8/1

Barcelona 

On paper there is no chance.

Barcelona are battling against huge debts, trying to stave off bankruptcy fears, and so lavish spending is not – and should not – be high on the agenda. 

Debts have mounted to almost £1bn due largely to the Covid-19 pandemic and the club’s reliance on football tourism.

But if they are to put together a package to keep Messi from leaving, it needs to involve winning and right now they aren’t close to the biggest prizes.  

Toni Freixa, one of the three candidates alongside Joan Laporta and Victor Font for the upcoming Barcelona presidency, told El Larguero on Thursday that he ‘has an agreement’ with two elite players. 

He did not delve deeper as to the identity of the two players but he did reveal that one is an attacker and the other is a defender. 

Friexa’s timing seems convenient with the March elections fast approaching but it set tongues wagging in Spain as to whether Haaland was the attacker Freixa spoke of. 

Finances still remain an issue and while Freixa said he has an agreement to sell 49 percent of Barca Corporate for €250m (£218m) in order to fund the moves, it all remains up in the air as to whether big signings are possible without notable exits.

Barcelona certainly need reinforcements in attack as they continue to reel since Luis Suarez’s switch to Atletico Madrid. And the prospect of pairing Haaland with Ansu Fati is one that would have supporters at the Nou Camp dreaming again. 

Odds: 8/1

Real Madrid 

With so much interest in Haaland, it may need a creative solution to win the race and Real Madrid believe they have it. 

Mundo Deportivo have reported that the Galacticos could use a ‘trick’ up their sleeve to fend off the competition for Haaland’s services by using his international team-mate Martin Odegaard as a sweetener to his arrival in the Spanish capital.

The report reveals Real Madrid plan to keep Odegaard, currently on loan at Arsenal, given his close friendship with Haaland, something that could prove decisive in the striker’s decision-making. 

Haaland would fit seamlessly into Zinedine Zidane’s preferred 4-3-3 system and would be able to ease the increasing reliance on Karim Benzema to fill the void they still feel since Cristiano Ronaldo’s departure.

Real Madrid paused their Galactico transfer policy last summer due to the impact of Covid-19 and the ongoing drain of funding major-scale development of the Santiago Bernabeu but change appears to be afoot. 

Zidane is in desperate need of freshening up an ageing side and Haaland would set a new standard for Real Madrid going forward as a world leader in his position, flanked by a fit Eden Hazard and Vinicius Jnr.

Haaland’s pace can stretch defences and performing at a high level for Real Madrid would significantly enhance his Ballon d’Or credentials. 

If the wages of Sergio Ramos and Gareth Bale are shifted from the books, Los Blancos will have plenty of room to make a splash in the transfer market once again. 

Odds: 4/1

PSG 

Imagine a front three of Haaland flanked by Neymar and Kylian Mbappe.

It sounds fanciful, the stuff of a FIFA Ultimate Team video game player but just imagine it.

PSG is another 4-3-3 system and another in which Haaland would be expected to press from the front.

Manager Mauricio Pochettino, much like Tuchel at Chelsea, adopts a high pressing philosophy and the pace of this elite trio would cause havoc on the counter-attack.    

In terms of putting up the kind of seasonal goal returns across all competitions that Cristiano Ronaldo and Messi have managed across their careers, Ligue 1 would likely prove a feast for Haaland, if the Bundesliga is anything to go by.

There would be an element of frustration from neutrals if Haaland moved to Paris given Haaland has been tipped to have the next great footballing rivalry with Mbappe, who he said provided him with ‘free motivation’ ahead of the last round of Champions League matches.

It may prove an awkward first meeting in Paris with Neymar after the Brazilian mocked the Norwegian striker’s zen celebration when they met in last season’s Champions League. 

The entire PSG squad later mocked the celebration en masse on the pitch after their qualification for the quarter-finals. Haaland may have forgotten… but has he forgiven? 

Odds: 12/1

Inter Milan 

Three does not go into two.

That’s the dilemma with Inter Milan and any move for Haaland.

Antonio Conte is wedded to a 3-5-2 system and as such there would be no room to include Haaland, Lautaro Martinez and Romelu Lukaku.

Inter are on course to end Juventus’ dominance and win their first league title since 2010 and so are unlikely to want to rip up a squad that has finally found fifth gear.

There is, unsurprisingly, lots of interest in Martinez – namely Barcelona – and Lukaku, City are said to be keen, but striking and goals is the one area this Inter side is not in desperate need of restoration. 

The odds are out at 22/1 for a reason, this one seems highly unlikely with Inter also seemingly undergoing discussions for a potential change in ownership.  

Odds: 22/1

Juventus 

On paper this would be a peculiar fit. 

Juventus have plenty of areas they need to address as Andrea Pirlo is tasked with getting a juggernaut back in gear.

A new striker is certainly high on the agenda but his 4-4-2 system does not play into Haaland’s strengths – and the methodical play-style also seems a drawback of this move.

It emerged on Friday that the reigning Serie A champions posted losses of £99m – double this same time last year – and so they can ill-afford to break the bank in the summer window. 

Cristiano Ronaldo obviously needs replacing eventually but while the attack is still running through the Portuguese, Haaland may well find his progress stunted playing second fiddle to the five-time Ballon d’Or winner, even if he would usurp Alvaro Morata and Dejan Kulusevski as the No 1 option to partner Ronaldo.

A lot needs to change for Juventus in upcoming transfer windows and while Raiola is well known to the club’s Agnelli owners, priority may lay in defence and midfield for a side spluttering in their latest title defence.

Odds: 18/1

Bayern Munich  

Will he be the next to take the well-trodden path from Dortmund to Bayern?

Mario Gotze, Robert Lewandowski and Mats Hummels all moved out east to join the Bavarian giants – and two of them even returned. 

But the question is, would Dortmund give up their best asset to make Bayern an even more immovable force?

Back in 2019, Bild reported a ‘Bayern Ban’ for Dortmund’s players as the black and yellow side had become sick at losing their best players to those over at the Allianz Arena.

Nonetheless, Germany icon Lothar Matthaus said that he can see a scenario in which Haaland breaks the supposed ban and heads to Dortmund as a replacement for Lewandowski. 

‘He could succeed Robert Lewandowski at Bayern Munich in two or three years if Lewandowski should think about the end of his career,’ the former Germany captain told Sport1. 

But having been crowned FIFA’s Best men’s player of 2020, Lewandowski is still at the top of his game and so it begs the question, could they play together as a deadly duo? 

‘Lewandowski is currently in form, Haaland too and as long as Lewandowski is playing for Bayern, I don’t think Haaland will come. They will not be able to play with a Haaland-Lewandowski double because they would take away each other’s strengths,’ Matthaus added.

‘Bayern will not think about selling Lewandowski. He will end his great career in Munich.  

‘Only when Lewandowski is no longer with Bayern will the place for Haaland in Munich be freed up.’

That answers that then.  

Odds: 6/1