Real Madrid Transfers: Erling Haaland might get easier to acquire

Dortmund, Erling Haaland (Photo by INA FASSBENDER/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
Dortmund, Erling Haaland (Photo by INA FASSBENDER/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Real Madrid want to sign a star forward in the summer 2021 transfer window, and there are three notable names who are on their radar. PSG’s Kylian Mbappe has been the dream option for the longest time, a reunion with Cristiano Ronaldo is now a potential reality, and Dortmund’s Erling Haaland is another brilliant young player who can change this attack.

Of these three players, Haaland may be the easiest to acquire. He will be cheaper than Mbappe, and he is a better long-term option for Madrid than Ronaldo.

There is another thing that could make Haaland easier to acquire than any other elite player this coming transfer window, and that is the current situation Dortmund find themselves in.

The Black and Yellows are in the midst of a dreadfully disappointing season. They are fifth in the Bundesliga, four points behind Eintracht Frankfurt. That means they are at risk of not making it to the Champions League next season, which would make it obvious that they must make sales. And if Dortmund were looking to hold out for top dollar in a Haaland transfer, their lack of leverage due to their own struggles could doom their plans at the bargaining table.

Erling Haaland would be the face of Real Madrid’s attack for years to come

Dortmund are still alive in the Champions League, but they have drawn arguably the toughest quarterfinal matchup with Manchester City. So there may not be much respite for this struggling club in European competition.

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Their issues in the Bundesliga come despite Haaland’s own individual brilliance. He is sitting at 21 goals and four assists in 21 appearances, essentially carrying BVB. Haaland scored two early goals against Bayern Munich, only to see Dortmund blow the 2-0 lead and lose 4-2 to their rivals. And then this past weekend, Dortmund squandered another Haaland brace, drawing 2-2 with lowly Koln, who are now in the relegation zone behind Mainz.

If Haaland is frustrated by what’s transpired around him, he hasn’t shown it. But you have to feel like the 20-year-old realizes he’s so much better than this. It’s outrageous that he is often one of the only few players trying to make something happen.

In the high-flying Bundesliga, only Jadon Sancho and Raphael Guerreiro have double-digit goal contributions on Dortmund outside of Haaland. Marco Reus has just nine. And Sancho is the only other player with more than three goals thus far in the BuLi.

At Real Madrid, Haaland could spearhead an attack and be the face of the biggest club in the world’s offense. He’d get to receive passes from a midfield comprised of Luka Modric, Toni Kroos, Fede Valverde, and fellow countryman Martin Odegaard. You know, instead of what he currently has at Dortmund.

So his own desire to reach that next level could enable him to push his current club, nudging them in a direction that accelerates a transfer. And if he makes it clear that Real is his preferred destination, then that’s all the more reason for the Bundesliga side to prioritize working out a deal with Los Blancos, with whom Dortmund have a great working relationship.

Compound Dortmund’s struggles also serving as an accelerant to a deal and even possibly lowering Haaland’s price tag by a significant margin, and you’ve got a set of circumstances that seems to greatly favor Florentino Perez and Real Madrid pulling off a Galactic signing. Real’s financial situation is such that signing Haaland will be extremely difficult, but nobody should be willing to declare there is “no chance”.