Real Madrid feel they have an advantage in their attempts to bring in Erling Haaland once Karim Benzema leaves the club.
The 35-year-old is set to stay at Real Madrid next season, but the prediction is that that will be his final campaign at the Santiago Bernabeu, at which point Los Blancos will seek a quality replacement, likely by the name of Haaland.
As per Diario AS, they feel the Norwegian star will be keen to move to Madrid at that time. Aside from the fact he already likes Spain and spends plenty of time at his house in Marbella, on a sporting level they feel he will be ready for the move.
Either Haaland will have won the Champions League with Manchester City, and reached the peak of achievement with Pep Guardiola. Or a frustrated Haaland will not have tasted success, and will see Real Madrid, with their pedigree in the competition, as the place to secure that success. He would also have a better shot at the Ballon d’Or at Madrid too.
Financially, the Madrid daily say that Haaland will have a €220m release clause in the summer of 2024, which will reduce as he draws closer to the expiry of the deal in 2027.
It should be noted that City rarely hold onto to players that do not want to be there either. Guardiola has consistently opened the door for players who want out. Whether Real Madrid could afford such a mammoth operation is another matter though, and may depend on their business this summer.
It was projected that Kylian Mbappe would arrive in 2022, but instead Aurelien Tchouameni was signed for €80m. Should Los Blancos refrain from a star signing this transfer market, they may well be able to meet City’s asking price.