‘A blind guy can realise Haaland is a great striker’
In-demand Erling Haaland could be priced at around £130million
PEP Guardiola has dismissed the notion that spending big on one player gives you an edge in football, but suggested City could sanction a nine-figure transfer fee for a player who would improve the team over a ten-year period.
The Blues are interested in signing in-demand Borussia Dortmund star Erling Haaland, 20, and will get a closer look at him on the pitch in the Champions League quarter-finals tonight.
But with Dortmund said to be asking up to £130million for the Norway international, Guardiola last week ruled out a move for a replacement for Sergio Aguero, unless the price reduces dramatically.
For all that City have been the biggest spenders in world football over the past decade, they have consistently refused to go above their valuation on players - and not only have they never broken the world-record for transfer fees, they do not have a player in the top 20.
City’s highest fee is the £64million they paid for Ruben Dias last summer, and the prospect of breaking the nine-figure ceiling has
not previously been on their agenda - although Guardiola hinted that could change going forward.
“Spending a lot of money on one player doesn’t give you an advantage to win,” he said. “Football is a team game, everyone makes a contribution.
“Competitions are not won by one player, it is every player. So far the club has decided not to spend close to £100million for a player.
“Maybe in the future, it will happen when the club decides it is necessary to improve the team for the next five to ten years but so far the organisation decides not to do it and that’s why we didn’t do it but maybe in the future.”
On Haaland’s qualities, Guardiola said: “All I can say is he is an exceptional striker for his age. The numbers speak for themselves. He’s a fantastic player, that’s all.
“In that age scoring that amount of goals is not easy to find.
“The numbers speak for themselves.
“When that happens it is because he can score right, left, counter, box, header.
“He’s a fantastic striker. Everybody knows it.
“A blind guy can realise he is a good striker. It is not necessary to be a manager.”