Real Madrid News
Ancelotti ‘very impressed’ by FIFA World Cup 2022’s Best Young Player Award winner
According to AS (h/t Madrid Zone), Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti has been left very impressed by Argentina midfielder Enzo Fernandez, following his exploits at the FIFA World Cup 2022.
Fernandez, 21, has been on the radars of Real Madrid as a possible alternative for main midfield target Jude Bellingham.
The Englishman has been Los Blancos’ top preference to bolster the middle of the park ahead of next season. However, Liverpool are said to be leading the race to sign the teenage sensation, forcing Madrid to look at other options.
Enzo Fernandez has emerged as one such alternative following his impressive start to life in Europe. Indeed, having moved to SL Benfica from River Plate this past summer, the 21-year-old has quickly made a big impression.
The young star enhanced his reputation with a series of solid performances for Argentina at the World Cup, resulting in him winning the Best Young Player of the Tournament Award.
He played 563 minutes across seven matches for the new world champions, scoring and assisting one goal apiece.
And, it is now being claimed that Real Madrid manager Ancelotti has been ‘very impressed’ by Fernandez.
The Merengues will need to start infusing fresh blood into their midfield unit as Luka Modric and Toni Kroos edge closer to their goodbyes. Both the veterans are out of contract at the end of the season and are yet to renew.
While it is expected that the legendary midfield duo will renew for one more year, it would bode well for Real Madrid to start making plans for life after them.
As iterated earlier, Bellingham remains the top priority. But his inflated valuation and Liverpool’s presence in the race make things complicated.
With Ancelotti seemingly being impressed by Enzo Fernandez, it will be interesting to see if Real Madrid are ready to step up their pursuit of the 21-year-old. However, he has a release clause worth €120 million which could be a hindrance.
It hasn’t been a good week for Real Madrid, who look all set to relinquish their Spanish league title to arch-rivals Barcelona come the end of the season, following a narrow defeat to the Blaugrana at the weekend.
However, as Real Madrid enter the international break, there is some positive news for Carlo Ancelotti and his men.
As reported by Toni Juanmarti, Barcelona look set to miss out on their two star players in Ousmane Dembele and Pedri due to injury, ahead of the upcoming second-leg semifinal tie against Real Madrid, in Copa Del Rey.
Real Madrid are heading into this game with a 1-0 defeat in the first-leg, meaning they must beat Barça with a two-goal margin in order to book a place in the final. The absence of both Pedri and Dembele, to that end, could be a major boost for Ancelotti.
Pedri, who was expected to return to full fitness for the second leg, has suffered a relapse. It has set his return back to three or four weeks late, meaning the youngster will not return until the April 23 tie against Atletico Madrid.
The situation is not much different for Ousmane Dembele. The explosive attacker is recovering slower than expected and though he was tipped to return in the league game against Real Madrid this month, he remains a major doubt for this Copa Del Rey tie.
However, Barcelona did register a narrow victory over Los Blancos even without these two individuals, so the task is definitely cut out for Ancelotti and his men as they look to exact revenge against the Catalans in Copa Del Rey next month.
