Former Man Utd target in Barcelona’s crosshairs, but might be too expensive | OneFootball

Barcelona are being linked with a move for Borussia Dortmund striker Erling Braut Haaland, as reported by Spanish publication Sport.

The Norwegian burst onto the scene last season, scoring 28 goals in 22 games for RB Salzburg. This form earned him a January transfer to Borussia Dortmund, where he has continued to find the net, bagging 35 goals in 34 appearances in all competitions for BVB.

Naturally, this has attracted attention from all over Europe, with some of the world’s biggest clubs looking to secure the 20-year-old’s services.

Manchester United were heavily linked with the Leeds-born forward prior to his move to the Bundesliga. Red Devils boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer had previously worked with the player at Molde.

Barcelona are another club who are rumoured to be eyeing up Haaland, alongside the likes of Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain. Sport have once again linked the Catalan giants to the Norway international, claiming that agent Mino Raiola wants his client to move to the Camp Nou.

La Blaugrana have had issues up front this season. Luis Suarez departed in the summer on a free transfer to Atletico Madrid and was not replaced, leaving Martin Braithwaite as the club’s only natural striker.

While the Dane is competent enough to be a back-up option, he is hardly on the level of other world-class forwards seen at the Camp Nou over the years.

Consequently, a swoop for Haaland would make a lot of sense from a sporting point of view. However, there will be concerns over whether the club can afford to sign the striker.

Sport reports that it would take a fee of €75 million to prise Haaland away from the Signal Iduna Park. Barcelona, having been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, may not be able to stump up this kind of money in one go.

Furthermore, given the transfer fees flying around in recent years, the reported €75m figure seems incredibly low for a player of Haaland’s pedigree.