Norwegian striker Erling Haaland is The Next Big Thing in football, so when he leaves Borussia Dortmund for his next club, it will be blockbuster news. According to the man himself, it seems like it’s going to happen this summer, and the preliminary negotiations will get started soon.
Haaland has been linked with absolutely all of the biggest clubs, in the entire world, including Manchester City, Manchester United, Real Madrid, Barcelona, Liverpool, Bayern Munich and Chelsea.
Haaland has a £66m release clause that will become active this summer and any or all of those clubs could easily spend that amount and not even blink about it.
“The last six months I have chosen not to say anything out of respect for Dortmund, Haaland said to Norwegian media outlet Viaplay, “but now the club has started to press me into making a decision.
“All I want to do is play football. But they press me about my future, so that means I have to make a decision soon.”
Depending on who you read and/or listen to, Man City are the favorites to land him. Or Real Madrid, or…well, these things are always in flux.
Haaland was then asked if the current situation means that we’ll soon learn what club BVB will be selling him to.
He responded: “That is what they [Dortmund] want. It means things will happen now. They have started to put a lot of pressure on me, and I have to accept that … so now is the time to get things started.”
Dortmund CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke admitted that the 22-year-old is being pushed into a decision, but he’s there is no rift between the player and the club. While a split is seemingly inevitable, it won’t be an acrimonious one.
“There’s no problem with Erling,” Watzke said to Ruhr Nachrichten.
“He is a spontaneous person. He’s allowed to do that. But he must also have some understanding for our situation — we can’t wait until the end of May.”
It’s clear that Dortmund want to get this sorted sooner rather than later, in order to get the best deal they can for him. That said, Borussia Dortmund Chief Michael Zorc stated that Haaland’s comments took him by surprise. He then downplayed the concept of negotiations getting underway for a transfer move in the summer.
“Erling’s statements surprised us a bit,” Zorc said to Kicker.
“There is currently no deadline, no deadlines, and there have not even been any discussions. But that we want and have to have talks at some point is clear, understandable and only professional.”
Typically, whenever it is made well known to everyone that a club needs or wants to sell a player it works against them and drives the price down. With Erling Haaland though, it certainly won’t be the case. Let the bidding war begin.
Paul M. Banks is the owner/manager of The Bank (TheSportsBank.Net) and author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” as well as “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He has regularly appeared in WGN, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune, and co-hosts the After Extra Time podcast. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram.