Man Utd, Erling Haaland and a potential 2022 transfer
Erling Haaland is yet to make a decision on his future, despite reports suggesting that Manchester United have pulled out of the race to sign him because he's chosen to join Real Madrid.
Haaland has quickly elevated himself to world class status - confirmed by 90min readers in December - after proving at Borussia Dortmund that the form he showed when bursting onto the scene with RB Salzburg was no flash in the pan.
The 21-year-old's blistering goal statistics beggar belief, truth be told, and he's currently sitting on 19 goals in all competitions from just 15 appearances. That's taken him up to 76 goals in just 74 games for Dortmund since his January 2020 arrival – evidence that he's got the consistency, scoring power and hunger to truly become one of the world's best strikers.
The Norwegian has an estimated £63m release clause in his Dortmund contract that becomes active this summer, meaning the Bundesliga giants can do little to stop him leaving once a matching offer arrives.
It's a question of when, not if, a bid comes in, but it remains to be seen whether United, Real Madrid, Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Manchester City, Chelsea, Liverpool or PSG (we could go on) look to make the first official move.
One thing 90min can confirm is that reports stating that Haaland has already picked Real Madrid as his next destination are premature, and Manchester United are most certainly not out of the running to sign him.
The Red Devils' interest is well documented and regardless of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's departure as manager late last year, they remain interested in taking Haaland to Old Trafford and have not backed away from the negotiating table.
Agent Mino Raiola is continuing to hold informal talks with all interested parties, but Haaland is currently no closer to choosing where he'll be playing his football after he leaves Dortmund.
The obvious stumbling block for clubs wanting to lure Haaland other than United and Real Madrid are his future wages. His unerring ability means he can command figures among the very best in the game, which may rule out the likes of Liverpool and Manchester City (yes, Manchester City) because of their regimented wage structures and how they like to operate their respective businesses.
Couple that with the fact that while £63m may be the transfer fee, Haaland will be due a significant signing-on fee, hefty bonuses and other contractual details – and that's before agent fees have been taken to account. Essentially, whoever wins the race is looking at a transfer worth £200m+ all things considered; something United can most certainly afford given their financial muscle.