Manchester City are reportedly set to prioritise a move for Erling Haaland over Tottenham star Harry Kane in the summer transfer window next year.
According to a report from Spanish publication Fichajes, Manchester City have made Borussia Dortmund hitman Erling Haaland as their priority signing for the summer next year over Tottenham Hotspur superstar Harry Kane.
Manchester City are in the market for a new top-quality striker following the departure of Sergio Aguero on a free transfer in the summer earlier this year. The reigning champions of England ardently pursued the signing of Kane from Tottenham all summer long, but the Lilywhites held firm on their stance of him not being up for sale.
Eventually, the 28-year-old England captain decided to put the talks to an end and stay put with the north London giants, leaving Manchester City with no natural striker beyond Gabriel Jesus in their squad for the new season. While they are doing quite well without a natural No. 9, Pep Guardiola & co. are intent on resolving the issue before next season.
Recent reports had indicated that Manchester City might not be done with their interest in Kane and could try to sign him again next year. However, as per the aforementioned outlet, the Sky Blues have decided to not pursue the Englishman, who has made a torrid start to the season, but instead, go after Borussia Dortmund marksman Erling Haaland.
The 21-year-old has been one of the most in-form goalscorers in European football over the past eighteen months or so. Having joined Dortmund from RB Salzburg back in January last year, he has plundered 68 goals in just 67 games, putting himself on the radars of almost every top club in Europe.
Real Madrid have been the club that are linked the strongest with the Norwegian international. In fact, it has also been claimed that there is a pre-agreement between Los Blancos and Haaland to complete a move next year. However, that has not stopped Manchester City from entering the race for the signing of the goal machine.
Haaland will be available for a fee of €75 million next year owing to a release clause in his contract that gets activated in 2022. That should not be an issue for Manchester City at all, who broke their club transfer record for Jack Grealish earlier this year. The fact that the 21-year-old’s father, Alf-Inge, played for the Cityzens might also help their cause.
In addition, Pep Guardiola is said to be taking a personal interest in trying to convince Haaland to make the switch to the Etihad. However, given the intense competition for his signing, it will be interesting to see if Manchester City are indeed able to pull it off. As for Kane, he continues to attract interest from other quarters, with Real Madrid still monitoring him.
