Cristiano Ronaldo’s arrival this summer won’t halt Manchester United’s pursuit of Erling Haaland at the end of the season, according to ESPN’s Mark Ogden.

United exceeded their summer budget to make Ronaldo the highest-paid player at Old Trafford. However, Borussia Dortmund striker Haaland reportedly remains a priority transfer target, and United are ready to battle Manchester City, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, and Paris Saint-Germain for the 21-year-old.

It’s understood Haaland is available for €75 million next offseason due to a release clause written into his BVB contract.

The competition to sign Haaland will be fierce. City are desperate to land a striker following their recent failed pursuit of Harry Kane and links with Ronaldo before he re-signed for United. Bayern Munich have identified Haaland as Robert Lewandowski’s ideal successor in their attack, while PSG are prepared to make a move to compensate for Kylian Mbappe’s anticipated free transfer to Real Madrid.

However, United believe they have the resources needed to acquire Haaland and hope that manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s relationship with the explosive attacker – he handed Haaland his senior debut as a teenager at Molde – will give them an advantage in the race.

The Red Devils’ determination to buy Haaland hasn’t weakened since Ronaldo’s unveiling boosted their wealth of attacking options. Daniel James was sold to Leeds United on transfer deadline day after it became evident that Ronaldo’s presence would greatly limit the Welsh winger’s first-team opportunities.

Haaland was reportedly close to moving to United during the 2019-20 winter transfer window before he chose to join Dortmund from Red Bull Salzburg. The Norwegian forward has since scored 63 goals in 64 appearances across all competitions for the German side.

Barcelona and Atletico Madrid opened negotiations over a possible swap deal involving Antoine Griezmann and Joao Felix, sources told ESPN’s Sam Marsden and Moises Llorens.

Completing such a deal on transfer deadline day could prove difficult given the time constraints.

Barcelona failed in their attempt to sign Felix on loan Monday before returning with a new offer involving Griezmann, who enjoyed a successful five-year spell with the Madrid club before moving to the Catalan capital in 2019.

Barcelona spent €120 million to sign the French international but the club has shopped him around this summer. Earlier talks with Atletico broke down over a potential swap deal involving the French forward and midfielder Saul Niguez, Marsden and Llorens report. Atletico is reportedly willing to reopen talks about that swap.

The 30-year-old Griezmann, who scored 133 times in 257 appearances at Atletico, is believed to be open to the idea of returning to play under manager Diego Simeone.

Felix moved to Atletico from Benfica in 2019 as a replacement for Griezmann in a deal worth €126 million. The Portuguese international has 19 goals in 76 appearances.