Barcelona’s Haaland mistake

Ahead of the last January transfer window, Barcelona were starting a search for a backup striker, a player that would occasionally fill in for Luis Suarez, mostly in the Copa del Rey, possibly in a few La Liga matches too. They were tracking Erling Haaland, at Molde at the time, according to AS. In the end, however, they decided against going for the tall Norwegian youngster, considering him a diamond not polished enough to make instant impact in a league significantly stronger than the one he was playing in.

Instead, they opted for the experience of Kevin-Prince Boateng, whom they signed on loan for the second half of 2018/19 and paid a €1 million loan fee to his employers Sassuolo.

Looking at it a year later, the Catalan club definitely seem to have made a huge mistake. Haaland joined RB Salzburg last summer and produced a magnificent output – 28 goals and seven assists in 22 games for the Austrian side, earning a move to Borussia Dortmund this month. Boateng, on the other hand, had absolutely no impact whatsoever at Camp Nou, making a total of four appearances with neither a goal nor an assist to his name.