Guardiola project on course as Barcelona clear path for Man City to strike

President Joan Laporta admits Barcelona will not overspend and risk the financial stability of the club, meaning a move for Erling Haaland is unlikely.

Barca’s money problems have been well documented over the past year. They were unable to keep hold of Lionel Messi and have paid the price, with a below-par campaign by their usual standards. The Catalans sit down in fourth spot in the LaLiga standings – 15 points adrift of table-topping Real Madrid.

Barca have traditionally been a club mentioned when any new talent emerges on the scene. And Haaland certainly fits that description with his exploits for Borussia Dortmund.

The 21-year-old has bagged 80 goals from 79 appearances in all competitions, with 56 coming in the Bundesliga. Many clubs have been mentioned in connection with the Norway international.

The usual suspects have all been linked, with Real, Barca, Paris Saint-Germain plus both Manchester clubs thought to be keen. Links to Manchester City have grown in recent times.

Indeed, the Daily Mail reported on Saturday that the Scandinavian wonderkid has already decided to move to the Etihad Stadium.

Whether that turns out to be correct only time will tell. But it now seems increasingly unlikely that Barca will be among his suitors at the end of the season, according to Laporta.

“Even if we had the best financial situation in the world, we wouldn’t do some deals for the sake of the club,” he told esport3, per MEN. “We won’t complete any deal that puts the club at any further risk.”

The future of Haaland has taken up many column inches over the past months. His January 2020 move to Borussia Dortmund came as a surprise, with so many top clubs hunting his signature.

BVB have a history of landing young players before