Published 13:42 IST, May 19th 2020
Erling Haaland's agent reveals reason for picking Borussia Dortmund over Juventus
Borussia Dortmund striker Erling Haaland's agent Mino Raiola has opened up on the reason for declining a move to Juventus and moving to the Bundesliga.
- SportFit
- 3 min read
Borussia Dortmund striker Erling Haaland emerged on the scene after his spectacular run of form with RB Salzburg, before joining the Bundesliga outfit in January this year. Despite his recent move to a new club, the player has still been linked with several other top European clubs. Now, his agent Mino Raiola has opened up on interest in the Norwegian from Italian giants Juventus.
Haaland agent Mino Raiola opens up on Juventus' interest in Erling Haaland
Erling Haaland's agent Mino Raiola boasts of some of the biggest clients in football, including the likes of Paul Pogba. The super-agent, while speaking to Italian publication La Repubblica, revealed that Juventus were interested in signing Erling Haaland from RB Salzburg. However, the 19-year-old decided against the move to Turin fearing the club might have asked him to play in the Juventus U-23 team.
Mino Raiola claimed that the fear of a lack of game time put off the deal for Erling Haaland with Juventus. The defending Serie A champions already have some high-profile stars lined up in the attack, including the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Paulo Dybala, Gonzalo Higuain as well as Federico Bernadeschi. Erling Haaland, therefore, would have found it difficult to make the breakthrough into the first team under Maurizio Sarri.
Also Read | Erling Haaland once scored NINE goals in a game for Norway U-20s, reveals idol was Zlatan
Man United, Real Madrid interested in Erling Haaland
Apart from Juventus, the likes of Manchester United and Real Madrid are known to be interested in Erling Haaland. Before his move to Dortmund, it was largely reported that the 19-year-old Norwegian striker would move to Old Trafford to play under his compatriot and former Molde manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. However, a deal fell through and he subsequently joined Dortmund for a reported fee of €20 million ($22 million).
During his time at RB Salzburg, Erling Haaland scored 28 goals in 22 matches across all competitions. Of these, he scored six goals against the likes of Liverpool, Napoli and Genk in the Champions League. He also registered several records to his credit, becoming the second teenager after Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema to score in three consecutive Champions League matches. In his first appearance for Dortmund, he scored a 23-minute hat-trick to mark his debut in style. The 19-year-old has already scored nine goals in 10 Bundesliga games, including the most recent strike against Schalke last weekend. His interview post the game, however, left fans puzzled.
Updated 13:42 IST, May 19th 2020