Norwegian’s arrival at the Bernabeu is a mouth-watering prospect but seems unworkable in practice
Real Madrid’s presidential hopeful Enrique Riquelme made a vow on Wednesday that he would sign Erling Haaland if elected as club president in Sunday’s election.
Can Haaland fit into Madrid’s squad, though, alongside Kylian Mbappe and Vinicius Junior?
It is certainly a mouth-watering prospect. Three of the biggest attacking players in world football over the past five years united at the Bernabeu, it would appear to give Madrid an unmatched and irresistible concentration of quality.
Haaland would also arrive at a point when his game is more complete than ever. During the 2025-26 season, Guardiola’s last year at City, he added greater variety to his performances, contributing a joint career-high eight league assists and improving his off-the-ball work. He is still one of the game’s most reliable goalscorers but he is no longer solely a penalty-box finisher.
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But this group does not exactly feel the same as the legendary BBC trio of Karim Benzema, Gareth Bale and Cristiano Ronaldo. For one, there is no right winger so the three cannot play together, and a rotation role is impossible.
For another, Madrid have spent the past two seasons attempting to find the right formula for Mbappe and Vinicius and a Haaland signing would do nothing to help with that. The only scenario where it happens is if Vinicius leaves the club and Mbappe moves to the left, allowing Haaland to play through the centre.
With the Brazilian’s contract expiring next summer and no headway made in contract talks, despite discussions having started nearly two years ago, an exit is a distinct possibility. Madrid would still need to sign a right winger though, so Haaland’s arrival would not solve any immediate problems.
Ultimately, there is no reasonable scenario where Haaland arrives at the club and starts in a team that already has Mbappe and Vinicius.
