Chelsea were among several top-flight sides who were interested in securing the services of Erling Haaland in the summer transfer window, according to reports. But, Manchester City won the race and have announced the 21-year-old's arrival from Borussia Dortmund.
The Norway international will join Pep Guardiola's side in July after having activated a €60million (£51.2m) release clause in his contract. Haaland has agreed personal terms with the Premier League champions, penning a five-year deal at the Etihad which is believed to be worth around £375,000-a-week.
He featured 24 times for the Dortmund in the Bundesliga this season, directly contributing to 30 goals. The Norwegian's star-studded displays steered the German giants to Champions League qualification.
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Following City's statement announcing Haaland's arrival, the striker spoke on his decision to join the club his father Alfie Haaland once played for. He told mancity.com: "This is a proud day for me and my family. I have always watched City and have loved doing so in recent seasons. You can’t help but admire their style of play, it’s exciting and they create a lot of chances, which is perfect for a player like me."
Since taking centre stage at Dortmund, Haaland quickly grew into one of Europe's most highly sought-after strikers. And, before the ink had dried on the contract that confirmed his £17m switch from Red Bull Salzburg in 2019, the Norwegian's representatives had already begun to plot their client's next move, according to ESPN.
The report claims that in April 2021, Mino Raiola — who sadly passed earlier this year following illness — and father Alfie visited Real Madrid and Barcelona on the day over a potential transfer. Earlier this year, ESPN adds that Chelsea and Bayern Munich bought tickets for the raffle, though it was the Premier League champions who 'left the best impression'.
However, while Thomas Tuchel's side were reportedly in the race, the west Londoners had reservations about signing Haaland — and it wasn't financially motivated, but instead tactically. ESPN claim that Chelsea scouts 'raised concerns' about whether the striker's stylistic profile would be suited to the Premier League.
The Blues' entourage outlined that the transition from German football to English could prove a problem; there's less space for forward players to attack and run into in the Premier League, compared with the Bundesliga. Chelsea have suffered a similar problem first-hand, with Timo Werner — a serial in-behind Bundesliga talisman — who struggled to hit the ground running.
A few months into the former RB Leipzig striker's tenure in west London, he admitted the upscale in difficulty. Speaking in December 2020, Werner said: "The Premier League is a little bit different to my old league. It's tougher than I thought. The contact here is harder than in Germany, it's what I expected but not like this.
"The beginning was very good, but now after a lot of games I'm struggling a little," he added. "I think it's hard when you play every three days, and on Saturday against teams that can rest the whole week."
