Only four clubs can afford to sign Haaland despite €75m release clause

Erling Haaland is expected to be the hottest property in World football next summer, though reports in Germany say that only four clubs can have realistic hopes of signing the striker.

The striker has enjoyed a remarkable rise to prominence in the last two years, plundering goals for fun during his spell with RB Salzburg, before opting for a move to Borussia Dortmund in January 2020.

The Norwegian has continued his superhuman goalscoring record during his time at the Westfalenstadion, his strike against Besiktas on Wednesday evening taking his tally to 66 goals in 66 games for BVB.

Chelsea were believed to be willing to spend £130 million to sign Haaland earlier this summer, though Dortmund were unwilling to sell, with Thomas Tuchel’s side having since completed the £97.5m deal to bring Romelu Lukaku back to Stamford Bridge from Inter Milan.

Dortmund may, however, be powerless to keep Haaland at the club beyond next summer though, with the 21-year-old’s contract possessing a €75m (£68m) release clause which is likely to attract virtually all of Europe’s elite clubs.

The Premier League‘s big four – United, City, Chelsea and Liverpool – have all been linked, as have PSG, Barcelona, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and Juventus, with Bild reporting that it is ‘almost certain’ that the striker will move to pastures new next summer.

Erling Haaland in the #UCL

Played: 17
Scored: 21

He's a cheat code 🤯 pic.twitter.com/S2iqLYrn9c

— Goal (@goal) September 15, 2021

Despite the somewhat affordable release clause in his deal, Bild say that only a ‘maximum’ of four clubs could actually afford to do a deal for Haaland, his agent Mino Raiola expected to demand a large fee for himself, while the player has previously been claimed to be demanding huge wages to become one of the world’s best-paid players.

With this in mind, the report states that Manchester United, Manchester City, PSG and Real Madrid are the only clubs who could realistically look to complete a deal for the prolific striker next summer.

City tried and failed to bring Harry Kane to the club this summer, before turning their attentions to sign Cristiano Ronaldo, only for the 36-year-old to opt for a return to Manchester United.

Despite Ronaldo’s return to Old Trafford, United are still expected to challenge for Haaland’s signature, the striker having worked with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer during the pair’s time at Molde.

Werner among Dortmund options to replace Haaland