Juventus wanted Erling Haaland "years ago" but star "wasn’t attracted" to move
Juventus wanted Borussia Dortmund'sErling Haaland "years ago" but the Norwegian striker "wasn't attracted" to a move to the Italian giants.
This has been revealed by the club's sports coordinator, Federico Cherubini, four years after Juve's first attempt to sign Haaland, when he was still playing for Molde.
The forward has gone on to show his incredible goal scoring prowess in Austria and Germany since, scoring 20 Champions League goals in just 16 matches for Red Bull Salzburg and Dortmund.
The 21-year-old is expected to leave Dortmund at the end of the season with a host of top clubs chasing his services.
Speaking to Tuttosport, Cherubini explained that "Haaland is a regret for Juventus. We wanted him years ago but he wasn't attracted by potential loan.
"Buy Haaland now? We're going to look for players like Erling before maturing – even if I wouldn't want to preclude anything."
Haaland first turned down a move to Juventus back in 2017 while at Molde, having recently joined the club from his hometown club Bryne.
The then 16-year-old arrived at Molde for £90,000 and went on to score 20 times in 50 appearances for the club before being sold in January 2019.
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Aged 18, Haaland joined Austrian club Red Bull Salzburg for just over £7million and scored 29 goals in just 27 appearances for the club.
His performances in the Champions League group stages in the 2019/20 season caught the eye of Europe's top clubs and Juventus are understood to have made another approach for him.
However, Haaland instead chose to join Dortmund in January 2020 for £18million and has gone on to fire in 63 goals for BVB in 64 appearances since.
A few months after his move to Germany, Haaland's agent Mino Raiola said that had Haaland have moved to Juventus, the Italian giants would have placed him in their under-23 side and not the first team.
Haaland could be on the move again at the end of this season, with a £64million release clause becoming active at the end of the 2021/22 season.
Juventus are not believed to be in the hunt for his services, but the likes of Real Madrid, Manchester United and Manchester City all are.
Cherubini's statement about looking to sign players similar to Haaland in terms of quality that Juventus can help to develop can be seen in their summer business.
Juve brought teenagers Kaio Jorge and Mohamed Ihatteren to the club from Santos and PSV, respectively, with the latter already sent out on loan to Sampdoria.
Fans will hope the club has learned its lesson from their pursuit of Haaland when it comes to future transfer approaches.
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