Erling Haaland makes his transfer decision as Man Utd and Chelsea eye star striker

Man Utd: The story behind the Haaland pursuit

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Borussia Dortmund star Erling Haaland would prefer a move to Real Madrid over the likes of Manchester United or Chelsea, according to reports. The 20-year-old has quickly established himself as one of the finest strikers in world football since joining the Bundesliga club from Red Bull Salzburg in January of last year.

Haaland has scored 47 goals in just 48 appearances in all competitions for Dortmund, earning links to a number of the world’s biggest clubs as a result.

United have been heavily tipped to sign the forward, with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer eyeing a replacement for Edinson Cavani in the event that the 34-year-old leaves the club upon the expiry of his contract in the summer.

Thomas Tuchel is also said to be hoping to bring Haaland to Chelsea amid their struggles in front of goal since the German boss took over from Frank Lampard in January.

However, Real Madrid have emerged as the prime candidates for his signature, with the player keen on joining the Spanish giants according to Marca.

The report claims that Haaland’s agent Mino Raiola is eager to engineer a summer switch to Los Blancos in line with his client’s wishes.

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The Norway international has a modest release clause of around £64million inserted into his contract with Dortmund, but this will only come into effect in the summer of 2022.

Despite this, a post-season departure is not out of the question with the Bundesliga contenders aware of the need to raise funds to mitigate the financial effects of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Dortmund would undoubtedly demand a nine-figure fee this summer if they are to part ways with their star man, a sum that Real could be prepared to pay in order to secure a long-term replacement for Karim Benzema, who will turn 34 in December.

In contrast, United are unlikely to be shelling out huge transfer fees with Solskjaer set to receive a budget of just £80m before player sales.

The Red Devils boss is hoping to add a number of reinforcements in a variety of positions, suggesting that a move for Haaland could be out of the question.

Meanwhile, Chelsea remain confident of landing the striker despite his preference to join Real, with Tuchel able to offer him a ready-made starting spot in attack for the Blues.

Dortmund’s sporting director Michael Zorc claimed earlier this month that the club will try to keep hold of Haaland until his departure becomes inevitable, with the belief that he can inspire them to achieve European success in the near future.

“I have never seen someone like him, we can search Europe-wide,” Zorc told Welt am Sonntag.

“If he ever left us somewhere, there would only be a handful of clubs, but we’ll try to keep him as long as possible for sporting reasons.

“We don’t want to play in the Europa League on Thursdays. We want to give our calling card in the Champions League.”

Haaland has already scored 20 goals in the Champions League from just 14 games, becoming the youngest and quickest player to reach the impressive milestone.

This season, he has found the net on 31 occasions in all competitions, averaging a goal every 82 minutes.

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