Real Madrid have an interest in signing Manchester City’s Erling Haaland but Pep Guardiola has made it clear that the striker’s exit won’t be so straightforward.
Erling Haaland joined Man City from Dortmund in 2022 and since then, the centre-forward has scored 71 goals in just 76 appearances. His contract with City expires in 2027 but the Premier League champions are already in talks to offer him a new and improved deal.
Four years is still a long time for Manchester City not to panic but they are trying to rush things only because of Madrid’s interest in him. Speculations suggest that Los Blancos will make a move to sign the Norwegian at the end of this season. However, Pep Guardiola remains steadfast in his determination to retain the player for the foreseeable future.
Guardiola said when asked about Haaland’s departure in the summer: “For one report, for one journalist or one Twitter account, one Instagram account, do you think they are going to change something that is going to happen? It’s not going to happen.
“It’s going to happen when Erling decides to extend the contract or not, when the club decides to extend a contract or not, or when we have potential offers to him or not.
“If someone wants Erling, it’s easy. Call Man City and ask. It’s what we do when we want to sign someone. It’s not more complicated than that.
“What do you think? That we don’t want Erling to stay here for one decade? We want him – for a long, long time at this club. For a long time. We are in love with him, we want him.
“What happens in the future? Honestly, I don’t know. We are happy to have him, hopefully he’s happy to be with us. That is what we know. And the rest? I don’t know.”
Kylian Mbappe has decided to leave PSG and join Real Madrid in the summer and since he will be joining as a free agent, Madrid will only have to pay him a €60 million joining bonus.
Mbappe’s near-to-free arrival would mean Real Madrid can still afford to go after Erling Haaland. Ancelotti’s side were ready to pay close to €200 million for the French winger last year and now they can use that money to bring in Erling Haaland.
Haaland’s Man City contract has separate release clauses for clubs in England and those outside the country. Clubs in England will have to pay around €200 million if they want to sign Erling Haaland but for Madrid, that fee will come down to around €100 million.
A fee in the range of €100-120 million is very much affordable for a club of Real Madrid’s stature and if Erling Haaland wants to join them then Perez won’t think twice before writing the cheque.
Manchester City are aware of their vulnerability if Los Blancos successfully persuade the 23-year-old to join them in the upcoming summer. This is why the Cityzens are so eager to secure a new deal with the 23-year-old.
