Manchester City have informed Erling Haaland they will better any offer made to him this summer as they aim to beat the competition to his signature.
That’s according to Sport, who say those in charge at the Etihad are working to ensure the striker, who they consider an ‘absolutely strategic signing’, does not ‘slip through their fingers’.
The newspaper explains that Haaland’s future will be determined in the coming weeks, with the striker having categorically decided to leave Borussia Dortmund.
He only needs to choose his destination, and at the moment, that will be either Barcelona, Manchester City or Real Madrid as the Norwegian has ruled out PSG.
In other words, if one of the other interested parties were to make a better bid than themselves, then City would better it.
Barcelona are aware of City’s spending power and know they will not be able to compete financially, so have tried to seduce the striker with the project on offer.
They’ve made it clear he would be the ‘standard bearer’ of a young team that they believe is destined to ‘achieve great feats’ in the coming years. It was this message that manager Xavi conveyed in a recent meeting.
Haaland is ‘seduced’ by this option, but at the same time, he knows he can ‘sign the contract of his life’ and Manchester City’s offer could be higher than the one from the Nou Camp.
That’s led those in charge at the Etihad to be ‘optimistic’ they can get their man, even if Haaland has indicated he would prefer to play in Spain.
That is still on the table even if he moves to Manchester because he is young and could still move to Spain at some point in future.
Thus they are offering mega-money to get him now and, alongside the promise of trophies, have presented him with ‘total financial availability’ both in terms of salary and commissions.
They’re so confident, in fact, that they only see Real Madrid as the ‘major competition’ for Haaland’s signature at this point.
