Borussia Dortmund CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke has admitted Manchester United’s offer for Erling Haaland was better than his own side’s but explained why they still won the race.
Of course, he’s referencing the time when Ole Gunnar Solskjaer tried to bring his former striker in from RB Salzburg but instead lost out to the German giants.
🗣 Dortmund CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke: "Our offer for Haaland was not the best. The offer from #mufc was better. However, Mino Raiola realised that Erling is better off with us. We have no inhibitions to let them play." [@berger_pj]
— UtdDistrict (@UtdDistrict) October 28, 2021
Perhaps what Watzke left out was that Dortmund accepted Mino Raiola’s insistence of having a release clause in as well as some hefty agent fees.
That certainly meant the whole deal swung in their favour over United who preferred not to be used as a stepping stone in Haaland’s career.
With Solskjaer being keen on the Norwegian’s signature for a long time, there was no way he wasn’t going to play him regularly either.
Nonetheless, it’s safe to say Haaland’s career has only grown since he joined Dortmund and he’s enjoying his time with the club.
Meanwhile, United are currently in their most chaotic period since Solskjaer took charge and his job is on the line now as well.
For all the criticisms he’s faced, no one can truly say the former Molde man hasn’t built the best squad since Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement.
He’s also done the most behind the scenes in terms of club structure and staff hirings so he’s managed to get a healthy machine running.
Haaland is likely to leave in the next summer transfer window as many clubs are chasing his signature and reports claim he’s got a relatively low release clause.
United will face an even bigger struggle to sign him if they still hope to do so, though there are no guarantees Solskjaer will still be in charge.