Erling Haaland’s suitors list has started to shrink as Manchester City and Real Madrid are said to be the only two contenders to sign the Borussia Dortmund star.
Sport on Friday explains Real Madrid president Florentino Pérez has not yet given up hope to bring the striker to the Bernabéu.
With claims from the English and German press pushing the player towards Manchester City, Pérez wants to stop this operation. To do that, the La Liga side’s chief has ‘notified’ BVB of his desire to pay the frontman’s €75m release clause. City are also willing to do this.
Carlo Ancelotti’s side must work to convince the 21-year-old and his representatives, and the ‘situation is not easy’.
Real Madrid wanted him to continue with the Bundesliga side until 2023, but this was not agreed by the player. They were concerned about his injury record and requested his medical records.
This allowed Pep Guardiola’s side to launch their efforts by offering Haaland a net salary of €31m per year.
The steps taken by the Premier League winners have made Pérez react. According to El Chiringuito’s Eduardo Inda, relayed by Sport, Haaland is willing to settle for 25 percent less than what is offered by City.
What Real Madrid cannot control is the opinion of his agent, who wants the best contract for the Norwegian. That, for now, is offered by the English champions and they are ‘better positioned’ for the transfer.
Over at AS, they explain Haaland ‘waits for Madrid’ despite receiving a proposal from the Citizens. They claim ‘money is not a problem’ for Ancelotti’s side as they ‘only have to increase that percentage’ to ‘reach the figures’ offered by City.
It’s further stated Real Madrid, for their part, have done their job and they already have the approval of the player, who continues to explore other options.
Karim Benzema is having a standout season for Real Madrid and AS state his ‘good moment is a very long shadow that could prevent Los Blancos from taking the step’ to sign Haaland.
To sum it up, Real Madrid can afford to match City’s proposal for Haaland, who wants to move to Spain, and who is also willing to settle for less than offer by Manchester City. However, the situation with Benzema could see them miss out on the Norwegian.
For now, Guardiola’s side are ‘better positioned’ to do the deal and if they can overcome Real Madrid’s competition by convincing the player, City can seal the deal.
