Erling Haaland moving to Manchester City would 'irritate' a former Germany international as he suggested Pep Guardiola's ideal striker has not been born yet. Elite clubs across Europe are queuing up to sign the Borussia Dortmund sensation during the summer window, but City look to be favourites.
Having totted-up 80 goals in 82 games for Dortmund, Haaland will be available for around £64million this summer due to a release clause in his contract. City have identified him as a target and are understood to be frontrunners for a deal § but some concern remains as a result of the vast competition for his signature.
Spanish giants Barcelona and Real Madrid are among those also interested. As for Haaland, though, a move to the Etihad Stadium might not bring him the on-field guarantees he requires — according to former Liverpool defender Markus Babbel.
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Speaking to Sky Sports Germany, Babbel said: "This move would really surprise and irritate me. Guardiola doesn't really like centre forwards. I would rather say that he should stay in Dortmund.
"He could develop better there because Haaland has to play. Whether that would be the case with Guardiola, I don't know.
"In the past, everyone played the centre forward position there, but no trained striker. Even top strikers like [Sergio] Aguero or [Gabriel] Jesus didn't play with regularity at City. I think the striker Guardiola wants has yet to be born.
"In addition, City play in an extremely dominant manner. Haaland still has to learn that, even in such a team that has little space, to play out his dynamism and find the ways to score his goals."
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