Real Madrid’s priority this summer transfer window is to sign Kylian Mbappe from Paris Saint-Germain. They also want Borussia Dortmund’s Erling Haaland but in an ideal world they’d have him stay put in the Bundesliga for another year and then go for him.
That’s according to Diario AS, who note that Madrid taking this stance could pave the way for a rival to secure his signature ahead of them. Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain, Bayern Munich and Manchester City have all been credited with serious interest.
This isn’t the first time such a situation has happened. Back in the summer of 2003 both Madrid and Barcelona were fighting to sign Ronaldinho from Paris Saint-Germain. Madrid had an agreement in place with PSG but wanted the Brazilian to stay at the Parc des Princes for another season.
Ronaldinho wanted to leave that summer, and that’s where Barcelona swooped in and stole him from beneath their noses, extracting revenge for when their great rivals beat them to David Beckham earlier that summer. And the rest is history.