Haaland says he 'felt SORRY' for Lewy after Bayern's failed swoop for Norwegian

Erling Haaland has admitted he felt sorry for Robert Lewandowski after Bayern Munich's failed attempts to land the star striker.

The Norwegian hot-shot was on Bayern's radar earlier this year during his time at Borussia Dortmund where he scored an incredible 86 goals in just 89 games.

The prolific 22-year-old impressed Bayern chiefs so much by his Bundesliga performances that they tried to lure the new Manchester City striker to the Allianz Arena earlier this year.

European football's heavyweight's such as Real Madrid, Barcelona and Manchester United were also in for Haaland but the interest from the Bavarian outfit appeared to irk the Norwegian, who was targeted as a replacement for Robert Lewandowski.

Haaland was filmed deliberating over a decision on his future club in a documentary entitled: 'Haaland: The Big Decision.'

In the programme Haaland says: 'If I try to imagine how Lewandowski thinks... I don't know how many goals and titles he has for the club. Then I do actually feel a little sorry for him. At the same time it's a chance for him to take the next step in his career. It feels disrespectful, but at the same time it is an opportunity for him'

The striker's father, Alf Inge Haaland, also spoke of Bayern's interest: 'They have shown interest, they have. I understand that they want to protect themselves. If he doesn't end up there they will say 'it was never on the agenda, we already have the best striker'.'

Bayern had initially denied any interest in Haaland but in a recent interview with Sky Germany, Bayern sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic revealed for the first time that the Bundesliga champions attempted to bring the striker to the club.

'We were in talks [for Haaland], but it became clear that things might not work out that way for both sides. That's why he's at Manchester City now and that's why we have other players,' Salihamidzic said.

Lewandowski has since made a switch to Barcelona after a long and drawn out summer of negotiations to convince Bayern to sell him to the La Liga giants.

The 34-year-old was unimpressed with Bayern's attempts to plan for life after him and left on his own accord.

The Pole has continued his prolific form at the Nou Camp, already scoring five times in La Liga.

Meanwhile, Haaland has had a blistering start to life at Manchester City scoring 10 goals in six games including two hat-tricks in the space of four days against Crystal Palace and Nottingham Forest.

Haaland scored City's opener in Saturday's 1-1 draw at Aston Villa.