Barcelona and Real Madrid news: Erling Haaland may leave Man City after just two years

Just two years in England? 

After at least a full year of speculation, Manchester City finally confirmed the signing of Borussia Dortmund striker Erling Haaland on Tuesday. Although neither club has announced how long Haaland’s contract will be or how much the transfer fee will cost, the Norway international will be playing his football in the Premier League next season. 

The transfer will undoubtedly have huge ramifications on the English top flight, which Pep Guardiola’s star-studded squad already dominate with little more than the occasional title challenge from Jürgen Klopp’s Liverpool side. Haaland making the move to the Etihad will surely increase Man City’s stranglehold on the division. 

So how does Erling Haaland compare to Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe?

Let’s see how many goals each player had scored by the age of 21 pic.twitter.com/y2azzMrQoZ

— Transfermarkt.co.uk (@TMuk_news) May 12, 2022

However, some hope for the rest of English football may still exist thanks to a newly reported clause in Haaland’s contract, which suggests that the towering striker’s stay in England will only be fleeting. According to BILD, the player’s representatives have included a minimum-fee release clause in Haaland’s Man City contract which would allow the player to leave the club in two years time for no less than €150 million (£128 million). 

Two years and counting – where will Haaland go next?

Such a clause in his Man City contract would suggest that Haaland has high hopes of moving to another club in two years time, by which point he may have already won the Premier League and Champions League with Guardiola’s side. And the urge to challenge himself in another division may seem like a smart move. 

Prior to agreeing a move to Man City, the Norway international was heavily linked with a move to Barcelona or Real Madrid. The Catalan giants admitted that they couldn’t afford a move for the in-demand striker this summer but may have the financial means to have another go at it in 2024. By which point Haaland may be more than ready to make the move to the Camp Nou. 

Similarly, Madrid were always unlikely to sign Haaland this summer due to the fact that they’re expected to welcome Kylian Mbappé to the club at the end of the season. And Carlo Ancelotti’s side also still rely heavily on the excellent form of striker Karim Benzema. However, in two years time, the club would have recovered financially from signing the former and be in need of a replacement for the latter.

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