Dortmund striker Haaland's priority is to play in the Spanish league
The player's father and his agent met with Barça and Madrid this week
The battle to sign Erling Haaland has officially begun this week after the first face-to-face conversations over his future took place in Spain.
Haaland's agent, Mino Raiola, and his father, the former footballer Alf-Inge, met with Barcelona and Real Madrid to sound out a possible transfer.
There is also interest in England but Barça came out of Thursday's meeting with the perception that Haaland wants to play in La Liga over the Premier League.
The big challenge now, of course, is to seduce the player, win the scrap with Madrid and find a formula to be able to pay for the operation.
Through his agent, Haaland has already communicated yo Dortmund that his intention is to listen to offers and leave the German club this season.
Dortmund are doing what they have to do, declaring him not for sale, but they know perfectly well they have to sell this summer of he will leave for his 75 million euro clause in 2022.
The Bundesliga side are good at negotiating the price up, as they have shown in the past, but they always end up selling in the end.
One of the keys is that Haaland would like to play in the Spanish league, so Barça and Madrid have an advantage over the English sides.
Thursday's meeting with Barça went well. Haaland knows first hand that Barça want him and what their project is moving forward, that he would be the club's franchise player the moment Lionel Messi decides to leave. They believe the Argentine will continue, even if it's only for one more season, and that the two can form a tandem with support from youngsters like Ansu Fati, Pedri and Iliax Moriba, among others.
The feeling was good and Barça know they have the advantage over Madrid because Los Blancos prefer Kylian Mbappe. Also, the relationship between Mino Raiola and Madrid has never been good, although it's all about money in the end.
Despite cash problems, both Barça and Madrid believe they can do an operation that wouldn't exceed 120 million euros. The English clubs -- Manchester United, Manchester City and Chelsea -- have more financial power at this moment, though.
Raiola and Haaland's father will meet with the trio of Premier League clubs next and will begin to reduce the field. From there, they will sit down with Dortmund to analyst the situation. There's a long way to go, but Barça think they will make it until the end.
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