Barcelona President Gives Verdict on Erling Haaland Transfer | OneFootball

Barcelona president Joan Laporta admitted it's hard to envision the club making a move for one of the best strikers in the world anytime soon: Erling Haaland.

The Catalans are poised to have a busier summer than they had a year ago when, strapped by their financial issues, they could only sign Dani Olmo and Pau Víctor to reinforce the squad.

Laporta insists Barcelona's economic standing is in a much better place than in years past and he revealed that the team are currently studying the market to add reinforcements, "on every line."

It's no secret that Barcelona have to address the striker position sooner rather than later. Robert Lewandowski is coming off his best season for Barça, but the Polish forward's health and form took hits in the final stretch of the campaign—not a good omen when he's about to enter his age 37 season. With no proven natural replacements, Hansi Flick deployed Ferran Torres out of position to fill the void left by the injured Lewandowski.

Speaking in an interview with Catalan outlet TV3, Laporta was asked about the possibility of Barcelona going after Haaland, a player Laporta had previously shown interest for.

"Although in life almost nothing is impossible, at this time we're not thinking of getting a reinforcement like that [Haaland], plus, he just signed a contract extension," Laporta said regarding the Norwegian striker.

Over the past months, reports from Spain indicated that Laporta was keen on making a marquee signing for Barcelona's return to the renovated Spotify Camp Nou. Haaland's name often came up, but after signing the longest contract in Premier League history in January to stay at Manchester City, the door seemingly shut on Barça's efforts to bring the striker to La Liga.

Laporta confirmed that he'll leave decisions regarding upcoming signings at the hands of Barcelona's sporting director, Deco and Flick, but he did preview an active summer in hopes to reinforce a squad that's fresh off a domestic treble. However, those reinforcements will be mixed with new talent emerging from the academy, an approach Laporta admitted to "like a lot."

With Barcelona's U-19 side winning the 2024–25 UEFA Youth League, a new crop of La Masia talents appear ready to make the jump to the senior team.