Real Madrid: Erling Haaland could be the top target in 2020

Real Madrid undoubtedly dream of signing Kylian Mbappe as a free-scoring wide forward, but if PSG are totally against selling him, Erling Haaland could be their top short-term target.

Between Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland, Real Madrid have two world-class attacking targets who are young, driven to succeed, students of the game, clinical, and incredibly athletic. Either Mbappe or Haaland would immediately transform Real’s attack, immediately becoming the star of the show in the final third and turning Real’s goal-scoring from a weakness to a strength.

Los Blancos may be one elite forward away from being Europe’s best team, and they hope to get to that level quickly in 2020-2021. As such, Real may be itching to get a player of this caliber before Mbappe becomes available in 2021, as PSG are still holding out hope they can sign the France star to a lucrative extension. Mbappe will have one year left on his contract in 2021, so PSG almost certainly won’t entertain offers for him this year until they absolutely have to next year.

So if Mbappe isn’t available, Real Madrid’s attention will turn to Erling Haaland. But likewise, Borussia Dortmund seem to have no intention of selling Haaland. He’s a special player who can help Dortmund win trophies, and BVB need him more than ever, with Jadon Sancho essentially guaranteed to leave this summer.

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Real Madrid enjoy a great relationship with both PSG and Dortmund; this is no secret.

In the case of the Black and Yellows, Los Merengues recently loaned them Achraf Hakimi for two years, where he became a major star. Dortmund want to keep Hakimi and could ask Real to extend his loan, and that could be a bargaining chip for Real.

Haaland may want to stay with Dortmund for one more year before his release clause kicks in, and Dortmund may not want to lose their best player before they REALLY reap reward from his quality.

But at the same time, Dortmund are destined to lose Haaland anyway. And Haaland seems destined to play for a super club like Real, who usually land the best young players in the world.

So if it’s an inevitability, there are two things holding a deal back.

Firstly, Haaland wants regular playing time. Real will have to work with him and Karim Benzema on arranging this, but there’s a way both men can co-exist, especially with Benzema being a noted team-first player.

Secondly, Dortmund don’t want to have a weak attack after losing both Haaland and Sancho. So Real could arrange another year on loan for Hakimi, as well as a potential loan deal for one of their young forwards. Perhaps Rodrygo Goes or even Luka Jovic could make their way to Dortmund. Rodrygo could become a Sancho replacement and one of the Bundesliga’s best players, while Jovic would be a more direct replacement for Haaland. He once set the league alight at Eintracht Frankfurt and would likely score even more goals on a much better Dortmund side.

Whereas PSG’s reluctance may make Mbappe an impossible target with a supposed 300 million euro price tag, Real Madrid could realistically persuade Dortmund and Haaland into a deal. Therefore, the Norway international could become Los Blancos’ top transfer target in 2020. And then Mbappe, regardless of what happens with Haaland, would become the top catch in 2021…assuming PSG don’t extend him beforehand.