REAL MADRID are set to beat Manchester United to Erling Haaland transfer after Martin Odegaard talked up Spanish club to his Norwegian pal.
The 19-year-old prodigy is one of the hottest properties in Europe and was in scintillating form before the season was KO’d by the coronavirus crisis.
Real Madrid are in pole position to sign Erling Haaland this summer from Borussia DortmundCredit: EPA
According to AS, ‘the stars are aligning’ for Haaland’s switch to the Bernabeu
According to Spanish outlet AS, Real Madrid are in pole position to sign the Dortmund starlet should they wish to act in the summer.
Haaland’s Norway teammate Martin Odegaard – who is on loan at Real Sociedad from Madrid – has reportedly sweet talked the youngster off the pitch in a bid to tempt him to switch to Los Blancos.
And Real are said to be boosted by the excellent relationship between Dortmund chief, Hans-Joaquim Watzke and Bernabeu president Florentino Perez.
Haaland’s agent, Mino Raiola has made it clear that he wants to bring one of his clients to the Bernabeu this summer given his long standing admiration for the Spanish giants.
Zinedine Zidane has made it no secret that he is on the hunt for a new centre forward with Karim Benzema entering the final few years of his career and Luka Jovic struggling to find his feet since arriving from Frankfurt last summer.
Haaland had netted 28 goals in 22 games for Austrian side RB Salzburg in the first half of the campaign – earning him his £20million switch to Dortmund in January.
The 6ft 4in forward has got off to a flying start with BVB – scoring 12 goals in 11 games – including a superb Champions League brace against Paris Saint-Germain.
Haaland’s electrifying form means Los Blancos face a fight with the Red Devils to sign the youngster – who is a top summer transfer target for boss Ole Gunner Solskjaer.
The Norwegian 47-year-old has a long standing admiration for his compatriot who slipped through the net in the last transfer window.
Both clubs are reportedly willing to pay his £63million release clause but it has now emerged the buy-out only comes into effect in two years’ time – in 2022.
This means that BVB could command a much higher fee if the Red Devils were to come in for the 19-year-old this summer, which poses a major setback given the financial uncertainty amid the coronavirus crisis.
Another potential bump in the road for the Red Devils could be Haaland’s agent – Raiola.
The Italian also represents Paul Pogba, and had a spat with Solskjaer earlier this season – accusing him of treating his client like a “prisoner”.
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Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
