Haaland has left door open for Real Madrid with £175m release clause

JACK GAUGHAN: Erling Haaland’s £175m release clause is all part of a grand plan carefully mapped out by his representatives and father, Alfie… Real Madrid feels like an eventual destination for a player who wants to CONQUER football

  • Man City striker Erling Haaland will be available to sign for £175million in 2024
  • Haaland’s contract at City will include the release clause in two years’ time
  • The in-form striker has left the door open for suitors Real Madrid to come calling 
  • Haaland came close to joining Real before being convinced to sign for City
  • But his football career is being carefully mapped out with the help of father Alfie
  • The decision will be in his hands, but Madrid feels like Haaland’s eventual destiny

When deciding which way to turn heading into the summer, Erling Haaland thought long and hard about the physical demands of the Premier League.

There was a belief around Manchester City last January that, with his £51million release clause six months away from activation, the striker preferred a move to Real Madrid and that the intensive English calendar was a primary reason for that.

Haaland suffered with persistent injuries at Borussia Dortmund, the only blot for a youngster who smashed goalscoring records and was coveted by European footballing royalty.

Man City’s Erling Haaland thought long and hard about the demands of the Premier League 

Having suffered with persistent injuries at Borussia Dortmund, joining City was seen as a risk

Real, and more specifically La Liga, was seen by Haaland’s camp as more suitable as he continued to learn his craft. City could wait for his peak years.

Armed with that information, City got to work convincing Haaland otherwise over a series of meetings. 

They told him his fitness issues could be corrected and that Pep Guardiola was the perfect man to harness his force up front. Both claims have turned out to be true, with 20 goals in 12 games.

Crucially, the champions were desperate for a striker in a way Real were not, given the continued excellence of Karim Benzema.

And so it is City who are reaping the rewards of a genuine megastar — but it would be foolish not to think Real form part of his future. Benzema, 34, cannot go on forever.

Haaland’s career trajectory has been carefully mapped out by his representatives and father, Alfie.

Haaland snubbed them for City in the end but it is hard not to see Real Madrid in his future

The striker’s father Alfie is helping carefully map out his son’s career in world football

The £175million release clause included in Haaland’s City contract in 2024 shows exactly that

Available to trigger in two years, his release clause at City of £175m will be viewed as good value for whichever European giant wants to spend big on their next No 9.

Real will undoubtedly come calling and it does feel like an eventual destination for a player who wants to conquer the sport.

The fee required to trigger the clause is on a sliding scale, decreasing as the seasons tick by over the deal’s five years, but will represent a blockbuster transfer regardless.

The continental concept of release clauses has crept into the English game recently and offers players a degree of control over their own destiny.

Take Harry Kane. City tried to prise the striker away from Tottenham last year after being told Haaland would not be available until his release clause kicked in.

But when Spurs insisted that only a massive fee — believed to be at least £150m, quite the sum for a player in his late 20s with a chequered injury history — would get the deal done, City opted to bide their time and wait a year for Haaland.

Now the Norwegian looks to be firing City to the title while Kane is 29 and still yet to win a trophy, having been forced to honour the six-year deal — without a release clause — which he signed in 2018.

A move to the Bernabeu feels like destiny for a player with dreams of conquering the sport

But whatever decision he makes, at this rate Haaland’s future will very much be in his hands

So talks over Haaland loom at City, though it is hard to escape the idea that his future is linked to that of Guardiola, with the manager set for discussions over his own contract in the coming months.

Those around the club point to Sergio Aguero and David Silva as men who did not look like they would stick around but ended up spending the majority of their illustrious careers at the Etihad.

It is not inconceivable that Haaland, who has taken to life in Manchester quicker than expected and integrated well with his team-mates, might fancy remaining where he is.

At the moment, nobody quite knows what the future holds. But be sure, it is in Haaland’s hands.




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