Former Manchester United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer revealed that he offered Premier League star Erling Haaland to Manchester United for just £4m, but the club ‘didn’t listen’ to the offer, a move that they now likely regret.
Solskjaer is now most well known for his time spent in the Old Trafford dugout, having spent almost years in charge of the club and taking them to a second-placed Premier League finish and a Europa League final, which they lost on penalties to Villarreal.
But it was during his time in charge of the Norwegian side Molde (his second stint from 2015 to 2018) that he recognised the potential of Erling Haaland.
The striker, who was 17 years old at the time of his debut for Molde, scored 20 times in 50 appearances for the club before moving to RB Salzburg, but his career could have been so different.
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“I got in contact with United because we had this talented striker who they should have had,” Solskjaer told the Athletic. “But they didn’t listen, unfortunately. Four million, I asked for. But they never signed him. Four million! Don’t ask (where he is now). He’s too good…”
Of course, Haaland has since become a world-class striker, and has broken just about every Premier League record possible this season while leading the line for arch-rivals Manchester City, who he joined for a massive £51m in the most recent summer transfer window.
It is not the only Premier League star that United have missed out on for cheap, with Brighton’s Moises Caicedo available for just £4m too before he completed his switch to the AMEX, a move that the Red Devils saw fall through at the final stretch.