Pep Guardiola hints Manchester City’s spending could break £100m barrier amid Erling Haaland rumours
Pep Guardiola raised the prospect of Manchester City smashing their transfer record to sign a striker.
City are on the hunt for Sergio Aguero’s replacement and identified Borussia Dortmund’s Erling Haaland as their top target earlier in the season.
Guardiola has talked openly about the financial demands being placed on them by selling clubs but suggested for the first time on Monday that City could break the £62million record spent on Ruben Dias.
Pep Guardiola has hinted Manchester City could spend more than £100m on a player
The Premier League leaders have been linked with a big money move for Erling Haaland
Prior to Dias, City have only ventured just north of the £50m mark, paying Leicester City £60m to acquire Riyad Mahrez, and brokering a £58.5m deal with Juventus for Joao Cancelo.
‘So far, the club has decided not to spend close to £100m for a player,’ Guardiola said on the eve of meeting Dortmund.
‘Maybe in the future it will happen when the club decides it is necessary to improve the team for the next five to 10 years. The organisation has so far decided not to and that is why we haven’t. Maybe in the future.
‘Spending a lot of money on one player doesn’t give you an advantage to win. Football is a team game, everyone makes a contribution. Competitions are not won by one player, it is every player.’
Haaland has 33 goals in 32 games this season and became the youngest-ever player to reach 20 Champions League strikes.
Guardiola praised the Norwegian striker for the stats he is producing at such a young age
‘He’s exceptional but it’s not appropriate for me to talk about him,’ Guardiola added before being pressed on the 20-year-old’s qualities.
‘The numbers speak for themselves. He can score right, left, counter attacks, in the box, headers. He’s a fantastic striker, everyone knows it. A blind guy can realise he’s a good striker, it’s not necessary to be a manager.’
City are aiming to reach the last four of this competition for the first time under Guardiola and his holding midfielder, Rodri, claimed they are expecting an explosive first leg with Dortmund.
City are in the market to replace club legend Sergio Aguero, who will be leaving in the summer
‘They have a very anarchic type of game,’ Rodri said. ‘They try to punish you on the counter attack.
‘We have to take the ball and responsibility and avoid counter-attacks for those kind of players who are dangerous in these spaces.
‘We have the motivation [to win] every single year. Sergio is a very, very important player for us. He deserves the best and for me it would be a dream to achieve this competition with him and all the team. It would be the best present for him and everyone.’
