Erling Haaland has a contract at BVB until 2024, but the striker has an exit option. Will he make use of it? Advisor Mino Raiola now revealed that they have been preparing a transfer of the Norwegian for some time.
“Erling is back in form, Erling is scoring, and he is healthy and feeling good,” said BVB coach Marco Rose after the 5-0 Champions League exit against Besiktas. But whether the 21-year-old, who has scored 51 goals in 51 Bundesliga games, will continue to strut his stuff for the Westphalians in the future is far from certain. Managing director Hans-Joachim Watzke announced “talks in the coming weeks”, knowing full well that it is not BVB who can decide whether Haaland exercises his exit option.
As Haaland’s advisor Mino Raiola now told “Sport 1”, they have been working on a transfer of the Norwegian for some time. “The big deals are carefully prepared one or two years in advance. We have been thinking, doing and making for two years,” said the 54-year-old, adding, “We have clear ideas of where we want Erling to go and of course we look at what the market offers. “
“Hate friendship” with BVB bosses
But the Italian, who in addition to Haaland also manages stars such as Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Romelo Lukaku and Paul Pogba, also spoke in praise of BVB and sporting director Michael Zorc, with whom he had a “very bad relationship”, “really very bad. He must have really hated me. I never thought that hatred would turn into friendship. He has my maximum respect. He defends his club to the death. The negotiations with him were stubborn. But it’s thanks to Zorc that Erling is playing for BVB today.”
Raiola praised above all the courage of Dortmund, who did not shy away from the risk with Haaland – and that paid off in the end. “They had the balls at the time to bring in someone like Erling, who is still quite unknown but still costs a lot of money. If they had hesitated for a year, they would never have been able to get these players. “
He also has respect for BVB club boss Hans-Joachim Watzke, with whom it was not always easy, as Raiola revealed: “We had arguments, really big arguments. But we still respect each other. Why shouldn’t we be allowed to argue? I would even call Watzke a great friend. And I don’t say that often. “
