Bayern Munich president Herbert Hainer denies Erling Haaland interest... or does he?

Erling Haaland is the best young striker in the world. There is no club on the planet, Bayern Munich included, that wouldn’t have its fans drooling at the prospect of the player making the move to their squad. There are several top clubs around Europe circling the Dortmund camp like eagles, waiting for next summer to swoop right in and prise the Norwegian phenom away before things get heated. These include Manchester City, Manchester United, Real Madrid, PSG, Juventus, FC Barcelona (don’t laugh at me), Chelsea FC, and Liverpool.

If you haven’t noticed already, I have not included Bayern Munich in that list. The Bayern board is looking very relaxed about the striker situation at the moment, with president Herbert Hainer being the latest member of the “there isn’t much to talk about, we have Robert Lewandowski” bandwagon. However, does he completely rule out a Haaland move to Munich?

Speaking to AZ, Hainer remained coy about the Haaland situation. When asked whether Bayern is looking to sign the youngster, Hainer replied, “The question of whether Bayern could finance a move for the exceptional Norwegian striker does not arise for us.” He then went on to express his admiration for a certain Polish striker. “In Robert Lewandowski, we have the reigning world footballer, who scores goals every season like no other”, remarked Hainer.

That first statement could be interpreted in two contrasting ways: Either Bayern is out of the race for Haaland, or Bayern has the financial might/ability to make a Haaland transfer feasible.

Photo by Andrey Lukatsky/BSR Agency/Getty Images

Regarding Bayern’s current and future transfer plans during the pandemic, Hainer stated “The club is still willing to invest, despite the lower revenues caused by the Corona pandemic”. He then promptly added, “But in the current situation, of course, you focus all the more on how you shape your spending.”

So, this surely means that Bayern is out of the race for Haaland, right?

BFW Analysis

Bayern Munich has the world’s best 9 in Robert Lewandowski. However, depending on how things go with the contract extension, we could see the player staying in Munich for the next four seasons or more, or leaving as early as next summer. I hope the latter doesn’t happen, but with so much interest from other mega-clubs (offering MEGA packages), one can never be too sure.

If Lewandowski ends up leaving, Erling Haaland is the only logical choice to replace him. One might consider players like Vlahovic and Sesko as good options, but if Bayern wants the best, they should go after Haaland. After all, it only makes sense that the one player to succeed Lewandowski should be the one striker who could live up to his legacy.

I, of course, would love to see Haaland move to Bayern Munich. This may sound very greedy, but I want that to happen AFTER we tie Lewandowski down, because a front two of Lewandowski and Haaland guarantees the next five UCL trophies. Of course, we all know that that’s definitely not happening.

Hainer seems to be playing poker with the media. He hasn’t given anything away, so it is safe to assume that Bayern is certainly not out of this race. That leaves us with two possible outcomes: Bayern extend Lewandowski, putting all minds at ease for the next three-to-four seasons, or Bayern sell Lewandowski and invest that money and some more on Haaland.

And if it hinged on my personal choice, I’d want Bayern to extend Lewandowski as soon as possible and just be done with it all. The Piranha is trouble enough... wouldn’t want the bull shark (Raiola) in Munich too.

What do you all think? Do let us know in the comments!