Barcelona have already turned their attentions to the summer transfer window as they look at potential options to reinforce a forward line that has struggled for goals in 2023.
The Catalans are interested in bringing in Atalanta forward Rasmus Hojlund, who has already been dubbed ‘Erling Haaland 2:0’ due to his goalscoring prowess and similarities with the prolific Norwegian forward.
Barca’s scouts have been following Hojlund and have liked what they have seen, according to Luis Miguelsanz at Diario Sport. The Catalans think he has what it takes to play at the top level and can only improve further as he’s still only 20 years old.
Hojlung moved to Serie A last summer after impressing in Austria with Sturm Graz. He has gone on to score 8 times for his new club so far and clearly has a very bright future ahead of him.
The youngster has also impressed on the international scene. Hojlund bagged a hat-trick for Denmark in European Championship qualifying in March against Finland and followed that up with a brace against Kazakhstan.
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Comparisons With Haaland
Any comparison with Haaland, who has been scoring goals for fun this season in the Premier League with Manchester City, is likely to be tough to live up to, but Hojlund has himself admitted he shares some qualities with the Norway international, as reported by Goal.
“I see parallels between myself and Erling Haaland,” he said. “He is fast, left-footed, tall, has a good nose for goal and is a classy finisher. His mentality is also completely insane!”
The forward is not the only one talking Haaland. His Atalanta manager, Gian Piero Gasperini, has also seen similarities between the two players, as reported by The Analyst.
“Hojlund has this spirit, energy, intensity, but also the technical quality that is just remarkable. He still has so much margin for improvement, too. He has very similar characteristics to Haaland, not just his face,” he explained. “He is so quick, he’s under 11 seconds over 100m and that’s not even trying very hard. Considering his height, he has a low centre of gravity and can move his legs very fast. I am convinced he’ll have a great career, he just gets stronger every day.”
Haaland has broken all sorts of records during his career and has scored an incredible 47 goals in just 40 matches this season at Manchester City. If Hojlund can get anywhere near those numbers then he will surely be in demand from all of Europe’s top clubs.
Barcelona’s Other Attacking Options
Barcelona do have other attacking targets in mind, but much will depend on the club’s financial situation and La Liga’s salary cap. A potential return for Lionel Messi continues to be talked about but it’s unclear if Barca can make it happen.
The Catalans are also thought to be keen on Brazilian starlet Vitor Roque, who has admitted he’d like to play at the Camp Nou, but his lofty 50 million euro price tag may make a deal difficult this season.
Former striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is another possibility. The striker has been frozen out at Chelsea this season and it would be little surprise to see him depart in the summer.
Aubameyang has been told he can return to Barcelona but only if he arrives on a free transfer and agrees to halve his salary, according to Diario Sport. The attacker shone on his previous spell at Barca, scoring 13 goals in a brief spell after arriving on a free.
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Barcelona Want Striker Dubbed ‘Erling Haaland 2.0:’ Report