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LaLiga president Javier Tebas has said he would like to see Barcelona sign Erling Haaland and Real Madrid to land Kylian Mbappe this summer for the good of the competition.
Borussia Dortmund striker Haaland has been linked with a move at the end of the season with Barca and Madrid among the top clubs interested in him.
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Mbappe is also a long-term target of Madrid and the forward, who has not signed a new deal with Paris Saint-Germain, is set to become a free agent in July.
“I prefer Haaland at Barca and Mbappe at Madrid,” Tebas, a Madrid fan, told ABC in an interview. “I want us to have that luck that we had in the past when we had two great players, [Lionel] Messi and [Cristiano] Ronaldo, that were in the two best teams in the world. There I’m more of a Laliga fan than a Madridista [Madrid fan].”
Both Messi and Ronaldo have left LaLiga in the last four years. Messi left Barcelona as a free agent for PSG in September while Ronaldo moved to Juventus in 2018 in a €100 million transfer from Madrid.
Sources told ESPN that PSG turned down a €200m bid from Madrid for Mbappe last summer after the France international expressed his desire to leave the club.
Mbappe’s family has been in talks with PSG over a short-term extension, according to ESPN sources, but no deal has been reached.
After scoring a stunning last-gasp winner against Madrid in the Champions League round-of-16 first-leg match, Mbappe said he has not decided his future but Tebas is optimistic Madrid will sign the striker this summer.
“When a player has six months to run on his contract and there hasn’t been a transfer and he has not renewed his contract, it’s very likely that he will leave,” Tebas added.
“The only club that is being mentioned in the media is Real Madrid. I hope we are lucky and Real Madrid are able to complete the operation. Mbappe would bring a lot to Madrid and to LaLiga.”
Meanwhile, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has said he would welcome Haaland’s arrival at the Camp Nou if he seals a summer transfer to Barca.
“I think he’s excellent, that he scores so many goals at his age, it’s incredible,” he told Mundo Deportivo. “He is one of the best.
“If he comes, we will compete together. Competition is good and even more so at Barca, who need the best in the world.”