Erling Haaland's 'preferred' transfer destination ahead of crunch 2022
By Tom Gott
Erling Haaland is keen to move to La Liga and has asked his agent to prioritise a switch to Real Madrid in the summer of 2022.
The Borussia Dortmund hitman is wanted by nearly every top side of the planet and his representative, Mino Raiola, has spoken to teams from across Europe to gauge the interest in the 21-year-old.
Real are among the primary suitors, with Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester City all thought to be in with a real chance as well.
However, according to Gianluca Di Marzio, Haaland's focus is on a switch to Spain, and while he would be open to move to Barcelona, he has his heart set on joining Real.
"The Premier League is certainly a player's dream league, but it's not in [Haaland's] head and not his first choice," Di Marzio told Wettfreunde. "I don't know why because every player wants to stay at Manchester United or Chelsea now.
"Even last year when Chelsea tried to get him, he didn't push to go there because he thinks Real Madrid or FC Barcelona are the clubs that are the right move for him at this moment.
"Only Real Madrid and Barcelona can get him because he can't go to Atletico Madrid or any other club. Probably because - like [Kylian] Mbappe, who wants to play for Real Madrid - he told his agent to try Real Madrid. And if not with them, then with Barcelona and if not with Barcelona, then with Chelsea, Man Utd etc."
Di Marzio continued to drive home the point that Haaland is not infatuated with a move to England, but did leave the door open to the Norwegian remaining at Dortmund.
"He doesn't like the Premier League too much, it's not exactly his dream. It's not the perfect league right now," he added.
"He prefers La Liga - he likes the league a lot. So I think La Liga is the perfect environment for him to play in now. Or the Bundesliga, where he currently plays.
"It is not certain that he will go in the summer. Borussia Dortmund thinks that another year there is the right step for his career."
Dortmund chief executive Hans-Joachim Watzke has already confirmed there is a ‘guarantee’ of interest from Real Madrid. He also hasn’t ruled out the player staying, although 90min understands that, in the event of a sale, the club will try to negotiate a staggered payment plan to command an overall transfer fee larger than the imminent €75m release clause.