Erling Haaland's transfer shortlist is shrinking, and it could bring Liverpool into contention

Erling Haaland's transfer shortlist is shrinking, and it could bring Liverpool into contention

Liverpool Echo Sports·2021-08-26 22:00

This time next year, Borussia Dortmund striker Erling Haaland could be at a new club.The Norwegian hitman joined the Bundesliga side at the start of 2020, and has been linked with a move away ever since.Its been reported Haalands release clause drops to around £64 million in the summer of 2022, meaning a list of clubs across Europe are going to be lining up to entice him.Haalands agent, Mino Raiola, told the BBC back in February that only 10 clubs across the continent could afford his client.He will be one of the future stars of the next decade because we see that stars such as Ibrahimovi, Ronaldo and Messi are coming to an age where everyone asks themselves: 'How long can we still enjoy them?' So everyone is looking for the new generation."Only a maximum of 10 clubs can afford to buy [Haaland] and give the platform you would like after you've been in Dortmund and four of those clubs are in [England].The likely clubs Raiola was referring to are Manchester United, Liverpool, Chelsea, Man City, Juventus, Barcelona, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain. Although given the current finances of those sides, a move to Barcelona or Juventus is highly unlikely. The Mirror reports that the list has already been narrowed down.Read MoreRelated ArticlesRead MoreRelated ArticlesSo where would Haaland fit best?A move to Manchester United makes sense, both on a financial and tactical level. United could afford him, even including the substantial commission Raiola would no doubt expect to make the deal happen. Furthermore, its likely that Edinson Cavani and Anthony Martial will be moved on next summer, leaving Marcus Rashford and Mason Greenwood as the only recognisable strikers.Chelsea are unlikely to make an attempt, having just signed Romelu Lukaku from Inter this summer.Man City, having seen their attempts to sign Harry Kane fail, could delay signing a striker for a further season and go all out for Haaland next summer. They could meet Dortmunds asking price and Raiolas commission, and Haaland would be put at the centre of Pep Guardiolas system. Unfortunately for Liverpool, this does sound very plausible.Read MoreRelated ArticlesRead MoreRelated ArticlesReal Madrid are going all in on prising Kylian Mbappé from Real Madrid, so its unlikely they will have any funds available to sign Haaland, but then again this is Madrid and Florentino Perez, so one can never tell.Barcelona are in no position to sign any players other than free transfers. So they can be ruled out for the discernible future.Juventus could be an option for Haaland, with Cristiano Ronaldo due to leave the club next summer, but much depends on the state of Juves finances, which have taken a pounding in light of the pandemic.Paris Saint-Germain could explore the signing of Haaland should Mbappé depart for Madrid, and he could form a deadly trident alongside Lionel Messi and Neymar. The Parisians of course could afford the large amounts of money that would be involved in any Haaland transfer.Bayern dont tend to go big on their signings, and they especially dont seem to like dealing with super agents, so a move within the Bundesliga also seems unlikely.Which leaves just Liverpool.Should the club manage to offload fringe players between now and the start of next summer, in addition to perhaps one of Sadio Mané or Roberto Firmino, the club could be in a position financially to offer Haaland (and Raiola) what they command.On a tactical level, Haalands signing would make Liverpool a bit more fixed, and a little less fluid, than with the likes of Diogo Jota or Firmino in the centre of Jürgen Klopps 4-3-3.But with Haaland, Liverpool would be assured of a 25-goals-a-season striker for well over a decade, and would be worth the investment and slight alteration of system.Bringing him to the club makes sense on every level, and is a realistic objective ahead of 2022/23.Read MoreRelated ArticlesRead MoreRelated Articles

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