Could Haaland really move to Barcelona this summer?

Martin Macdonald

• Updated: 17 May 2021 20:27 BST
• 3 min read

Erling Haaland is one of the most sought after players in the world at the moment, and has been linked with a move to every elite club in Europe this summer, including Barcelona.

Mundo Deportivo reports, via TV3, that the Blaugrana are looking to establish a relationship with Haaland’s agent Mino Raiola in order for the player to engineer a move away from Dortmund this summer.

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The Norwegian superstar will eventually move away from BVB whether it be after this season or, more likely, the next, but will Barcelona really be his destination?

Will the move happen?

In short, no. Every club in Europe, though some more than others, has seen their finances ravaged by the current pandemic due to the decrease in matchday revenue from having no fans in attendance.

Barcelona, with one of the biggest stadiums in the world in the Camp Nou, have lost millions upon millions over the course of the pandemic – and their balance sheet is not looking good.

Prior to the 2020/21 season they were linked with the likes of Memphis Depay and Gini Wijnaldum, two players on the wishlist of new head coach Ronald Koeman.

But, even though the pair were available for a lower price due to their contracts expiring, Barcelona were unable to put together a suitable financial package for Lyon and Liverpool to accept.

Rumours of Haaland having a release clause have circulated for a while now, but they haven’t been confirmed, with the general assumption being there isn’t one.

Therefore, Dortmund are in the driving seat when in comes to an asking price, which is not good news for Barcelona as the German side are notoriously stubborn in negotiations for their star players.

Only last summer, Jadon Sancho’s expected move to Man Utd didn’t happen as Dortmund refused to budge on their £100m asking price.

The asking price for Haaland could be similar, if not more, though Dortmund too have been impacted by the pandemic so a smaller fee might suffice as well.

Another factor to consider is that Barcelona’s presidential elections are coming up, with someone set to come in to replace the exiled Josep Maria Bartomeu.

Though some of the candidates have made rather outlandish promises – like bringing Neymar back – most have admitted that any big-name signings are simply not on the agenda at the moment.

Haaland, the player

Whoever signs the Dortmund hitman will be getting one of the most devastating centre-forwards to break onto the European football scene in years.

Initially at Salzburg and then with Dortmund, he has continued to smash in the goals which has led to the constant rumours regarding his future.

Barcelona, Real Madrid, Man Utd, Man City, Chelsea, Liverpool, and PSG have all been linked with a play for his services at some point over the past six months.

In the 2019/20 campaign, he scored 44 goals in all competitions over his spell with Salzburg in the first half of the season and then with Dortmund after his move in January.

His combination of strength, speed, and a ferocious strike make him potentially the hottest commodity in the game at the moment.