Real Madrid 'end their interest in Erling Braut Haaland'

Real Madrid have reportedly dropped out of the race for Borussia Dortmund forward Erling Braut Haaland due to the cost of the deal.

The 21-year-old will have a £68m release clause in his BVB contract this summer and is widely expected to leave the German outfit ahead of the 2022-23 campaign.

Real Madrid were thought to be at the head of the queue for the Norway international, but according to the Daily Star, the Spanish giants have now ended their interest.

The report claims that Los Blancos cannot afford the £300m needed to sign Haaland, as they have already committed to bringing Kylian Mbappe to Bernabeu this summer from Paris Saint-Germain.

Mbappe's wage packet will allegedly be worth close to £1m a week, with Carlo Ancelotti's side now deciding to end their pursuit of Haaland.

Manchester City, Manchester United and Chelsea have also been strongly linked with the Norwegian, who has scored 23 goals and registered six assists in 20 appearances for Dortmund this season.

However, a recent report claimed that Haaland favours a move to Barcelona, with the Catalan outfit firmly in the race for his signature despite their financial problems.