MANCHESTER UNITED and Arsenal have been handed a boost in their hunt for striker Erling Haaland – as Barcelona will not pay the 85million valuation.
Teenage wonderkid Haaland has lit up the Champions League this season with RB Salzburg.
The hitman is top scorer with seven goals already, ahead of Bayern Munich’s Robert Lewandoswki, on six, and Manchester City’s Raheem Sterling, on five.
Barca have already spent big on the likes of 107.6m striker Antoine Griezmann, from Atletico Madrid, and 67m Ajax midfielder Frenkie de Jong.
Nou Camp chiefs think 85m is too much for the 19-year-old despite his heroics this season, claim ESPN.
But the player is under contract until 2023 so the Austrians are convinced they can get big money for the young star.
Haaland, who is the son of ex-Manchester City defender Alfe Inge-Haaland, scored his fifth hat-trick already this campaign against Wolfsberger.
He now had 27 goals in 18 appearances in all competitions.
However, sources at Barca say the price they have been quoted by Salzburg is “disproportionate” and “not in line with his market value”.
They wanted Haaland as the long-term replacement for Luis Suarez, who is 33 in January.
The Catalans want to pay much less – and that could let in the English clubs who can stump up that sort of cash with the huge sums from playing in the Premier League.
United hope they have the edge in a transfer deal as Haaland worked with boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer when the pair were at Norwegian club Molde.
Solskjaer is a big fan of his fellow countryman – and with United still at least one striker down after Romelu Lukaku’s 73m Inter Milan switch and the season-long loan for Alexis Sanchez – the club could make their move in two months’ time.
