Raiola in Haaland talks with Real Madrid and Barcelona
After holding talks with Barça president Joan Laporta on Thursday morning, the player's representatives are meeting this afternoon with Real Madrid to discuss the future of Erling Haaland.
According to Catalan newspaper Sport, Alf-Inge Haaland, father of Erling, landed in Barcelona at 09:30 am on Thursday, accompanied by the player's agent Mino Raiola, to meet new Barça president Joan Laporta. Haaland's father and Raiola were picked up at the airport by Laporta’s right hand man. The meeting lasted approximately two hours, the first stage of talks held between the parties, with the view to striking a deal that they believe is possible, although according to Cuatro, in 2022.
The Haaland case took another turn on Thursday afternoon. Raiola and Haaland flew to Madrid to meet with Los Blancos, according to Cope and later confirmed by AS. The two arrived in the capital after lunch and a club car picked them up to take them to the meeting point.
Raiola and the father of the striker are holding talks due to Madrid's interest in Haaland, which, as this newspaper has previously reported, began in 2019. Haaland is a strong option for Madrid, as the club aim to open the new Santiago Bernabéu stadium with star signings, including PSG forward Kylian Mbappé.
Haaland on the market
It is already a reality, therefore, that Haaland is on the transfer market and that both Barça and Madrid are going after the Norwegian striker. Both clubs want to build their projects around the 20-year-old player.
In the case of Barcelona, the operation is still possible despite the current financial situation the club faces. The will of the player and a strong negotiating strategy by Laporta could see him leave Borussia Dortmund for a feasible figure for the Catalans. In Madrid, they enter talks with a financial advantage over Barça, and the relationship between the president of Dortmund and Florentino Pérez is very good.
Last week, Ronald Koeman was in Marbella taking advantage of the international break. The news caused a stir, because the Dutchman broke covid-19 restriction rules in Spain, but Barça put down work reasons for the trip. In the province of Málaga, the Norwegian national team set up camp for a few days with star player Erling Haaland, which has many questioning the real motive behind Koeman's trip.