Chelsea join Man United, rest of Europe in transfer battle

 

Senior figures at Chelsea believe they can tempt Borussia Dortmund and Erling Haaland into moving to the Premier League this summer, according to ESPN sources, as a growing number of Europe's heavyweights plot their moves.

Sources told ESPN that Chelsea feel there are several elements in their favour, not least an attractive financial package, but also the prospect of Haaland becoming the centre-piece of a young, expensively assembled team.

Chelsea spent £220 million on six players last summer but there are indications behind the scenes that owner Roman Abramovich is willing to sanction further spending this summer. Chelsea are the only club in London with a realistic chance of signing Haaland and sources said the capital city could be a major draw for the striker, in addition to the club's ambition to win the biggest trophies every year.

One key unknown, however, is Chelsea's relationship with Haaland's agent, Mino Raiola. They have not done much business with Raiola and were reluctant to pay him a significant agent fee when trying to sign Romelu Lukaku from Everton in 2017. Lukaku ended up joining Manchester United for £75 million and the striker ditched Raiola as his agent shortly afterwards.

Raiola's comments to the BBC that only a handful clubs could land Haaland sparked a fresh wave of transfer speculation this week around Europe. Manchester United have featured heavily in reports linking Haaland with a Dortmund exit and securing him would bring an end to a long pursuit that manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer thought he had won in January 2020. Solskjaer had met Haaland and a deal looked on, before he moved to Dortmund with a release clause between €75-100 million, according to ESPN sources, inserted into his contract which will become active next summer.

Solskjaer is still in regular contact with the striker, who he worked with during his time in charge of Molde, and when asked about the 20-year-old by reporters, the United manager has refused to dampen talk of a reunion at Old Trafford. United are well aware of his contract situation at Dortmund because of negotiations with Raiola more than a year ago and do not expect him to stay in Germany forever. But with no release clause active this summer, United may not be ready to splash big sums on the player, after Solskjaer recently warned the club will be "realistic" in the transfer market. The club's latest financial records show revenue is down 7% to £281.8m and profit down 7% to £33.6m.

United's rivals Manchester City are keen to sign a striker this summer and are one of the few clubs who could afford Haaland. They also have the link with his family after father Alf-Inge Haaland played for City between 2000 and 2003. Haaland was pictured in a City shirt as a youngster and attended a Wembley cup final as a fan with his dad. City are also still interested in Lionel Messi if he decides to leave Barcelona, but a move for him is unlikely to affect their other transfer plans.

Real Madrid's summer plans are up in the air, with doubts over how much cash the club will have to spend on transfers and whether Zinedine Zidane will stay on as coach. Both of those questions will be answered, in part, by how the team performs domestically and in Europe between now and the end of the season, as well as the evolution of the pandemic.

Haaland wasn't previously top of the list at the Bernabeu but sources told ESPN his performances this campaign have caught the eye and he would represent a more affordable option than long-term target Kylian Mbappe, who would likely cost more than double the amount required to meet the Dortmund striker's release clause.

Considering the great relationship between Paris Saint-Germain sporting director Leonardo and Raiola, the Ligue 1 champions are also in the conversation. But the only way they could make a move is if Mbappe decides to leave Paris. In that case, and especially if Messi was also not an option, Haaland could become a target. Money would not be an issue as Mbappe's sale would more than cover the cost for Haaland.

Leonardo knows exactly how to deal with Raiola and they have done enough business together in the past 10 years to make this deal happen if Haaland wanted it. Since Qatar Sports Investments took over the club in 2011, they have been really good at convincing big name players to come on board.

While Europe's heavyweights plot their move, Dortmund's hope is that they will not be in a position where they need to sell their star striker, though that will all depend on whether they make the top four and play Champions League football next season. Having sacked coach Lucien Favre, it has not been the season many at Dortmund were hoping for as they lie 13 points behind leaders Bayern Munich. BVB are in fifth place and face a fight to make it back into the Champions League next season.

Should he stay at Dortmund, Haaland will be reunited with Marco Rose, who was his manager for six months at FC Salzburg before leaving to take over at Borussia Monchengladbach.