Could Barça get involved in a bidding war for Dortmund's Haaland?

Erling Haaland's name is marked in red by many of Europe's biggest clubs. The Borussia Dortmund striker's ability to find the net despite his age (he's still just 21) makes him the natural heir to the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo and Robert Lewandowski in the coming years.

Barcelona are one of the teams keen on Haaland, although they're aware that their chances of competing for his signing, as of right now, are limited.

Haaland reportedly has a release clause of 75 million euros which kicks in next summer, which Barça could perhaps afford.

However, the problem for president Joan Laporta and his board of directors is that that amount could take up their whole budget for the summer, while their competitors for Haaland could afford it without problems.

PSG, Real Madrid, Bayern Múnich, Manchester United and Manchester City are just five of Europe's 'big' clubs that are contemplating a move for the attacker and none of them have the financial problems that Barça do.

PSG and Madrid's interest is directly linked to what Kylian Mbappe, who is out of contract in 2022, decides to do, while Bayern are after a long-term Lewandowski replacement. United know Ronaldo, as big an idol as he is at the club, is in the final years of his career, while City have wanted a new No.9 for a while. They failed to sign Harry Kane earlier this year.

Barça's attacking needs are more obvious after losing Luis Suarez, Lionel Messi and Antoine Griezmann. But the financial demands from Erling and his father, as well as his agent, Mino Raiola, who would command a big commission, could be too big for the Catalans to compete as they continue to make cutbacks.

It's a dilemma for Barça, who need to reboot their sporting project but must do so on a budget. It's a bad combination when you're talking about a striker like Haaland, who increases in value with every goal.