Barcelona have reportedly decided to cool their interest in Borussia Dortmund striker Erling Haaland, and will make Robert Lewandowski their transfer priority instead.
The Bayern Munich goal machine is coming towards the final year of his contract at the Allianz Arena, and it looks like Barcelona are now eager to pounce for him, with Manchester United also linked, according to footballtransfers.com.
Lewandowski has a stunning record of 146 goals in his last 123 games in competitive club football, with the Poland international arguably the best player in the world right now.
It would be exciting to see what Lewandowski could do at Barca, who need an elite goal-scorer like this to help them replace the legendary Lionel Messi.
Man Utd are in an even more desperate situation, however, with the club enduring a difficult season and facing doubts over a number of attacking players.
Cristiano Ronaldo will turn 38 next season so may not continue at Old Trafford, or at least surely cannot go on starting every game, while Edinson Cavani is set to be out of contract this summer, and Anthony Martial’s future is uncertain after going out on loan to Sevilla.
It could be difficult for the Red Devils to compete with Barcelona for Lewandowski’s signature, and the move could also be significant for their rivals Man City.
According to footballtransfers.com, this should mean an end to the Catalan giants’ pursuit of Haaland, which could mean it’s that bit easier for Pep Guardiola to bring the prolific young Norwegian to the Etihad Stadium.
TRUE? The Bosses of @BVB believe that @ErlingHaaland agreed to a transfer to @ManCity pic.twitter.com/jjlcSCWSil
— Christian Falk (@cfbayern) March 16, 2022
As Christian Falk tweeted above, Borussia Dortmund already seem to think Haaland will in fact be on his way to City this summer.
If United miss out on Lewandowski, meaning their rivals manage to strengthen with the signing of Haaland, it’s surely going to be another miserable season in the red half of Manchester next term.
As Luke Chadwick told CaughtOffside this week, the prospect of Haaland at City is a pretty scary prospect for the entire Premier League in terms of what it means for how competitive the English top flight will be.
“The thought of Haaland going to City, if the reports are true, is quite a scary prospect for the rest of the Premier League,” Chadwick said.
“It could well mean the Premier League becomes more like Ligue 1 or the Bundesliga if Haaland came in and hit the ground running. That volume of goals would make it very hard for anyone to get near to Manchester City.
“Of course football doesn’t always work like that, we thought Lukaku would make Chelsea real title favourites, but for one reason or another it’s not happened. But if Haaland went to City and played at his best, and they create the chances for him, it’s a scary prospect.”