Real Madrid News
Atletico Madrid rivalling AC Milan, Juventus in race for 22-year-old Polish centre-back
Atletico Madrid are set to rival Serie A heavyweights AC Milan and Juventus in pursuit of Spezia and Poland centre-back Jakub Kiwior, according to Italian publication Gazzetta dello Sport.
The 22-year-old Kiwior has been with Spezia since last year and has made a solid impression in Italy. He is currently a part of the Poland squad that is set to take part in the FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qatar.
And, as per the report, Juventus are set to track the defender at the tournament but will have to battle with both Milan and Atletico Madrid to land Kiwior.
Atleti are said to be on the lookout for defensive reinforcements in January which makes sense considering that they have been nowhere near their best at the back this season.
Jose Maria Gimenez and Stefan Savic have been bogged down by injuries while Felipe and Mario Hermoso are hardly convincing. Furthermore, Felipe is being heavily linked with an exit in January, opening the door for a new defender to arrive at the Civitas Metropolitano.
Several names have been linked with a move to Diego Simeone’s side as a result, including Bayer Leverkusen’s Ecuadorian centre-half Piero Hincapie. And Kiwior is the latest name being mentioned as a potential target for Los Rojiblancos.
The 22-year-old is young and has shown promise in Italy so far while he also has five caps for the Poland national team. But his contract with Spezia runs until 2025 which puts the Serie A outfit in a strong negotiating position.
And considering Atletico Madrid’s tricky financial position, shelling out big money for his signing could be difficult unless they manage to make some major sales in the January transfer window.
At the same time, the interest from Juventus and Milan will also complicate matters for Los Colchoneros in pursuit of Kiwior if they are indeed seriously interested in signing him.
Arda Guler’s Real Madrid stint has not gotten off to the start he would have hoped to have given the expectation that preceded the transfer.
Having joined in the summer after Real Madrid outbid their competition to win him over from Fenerbahce for a 20-million-euro fee, buzz was high as the winger was expected to slot into the team quite seamlessly, albeit on a rotational basis.
Unfortunately for the 18-year-old, he has been constantly marred by injuries since completing the move.
Reports have stated that after Guler picked up his third injury since his move, Real Madrid have been concerned and want to take things slow with the player to ensure he is fit as soon as possible after an injury to his quadriceps this time.
The Turk is yet to make his competitive debut for the club, and Real Madrid even sacked their medical chief in November, in light of their injury crises since the beginning of the season.
No loan deal for Guler
However, according to Fabrizio Romano in a recent YouTube video, he states that Madrid maintain full trust and patience in the youngster.
Despite his bad luck with injuries, the latest of which he is scheduled to return from after Christmas, the Galacticos have no intention of loaning out Guler to Turkish clubs despite lots of speculation of them doing so of late.
Romano states that Madrid remain firm on not shaking things up too much with the squad, and they want to keep their roster stable, including Arda Guler.
They want to extend their full support and protection to the player as he aims to return to full fitness and finally make his bow for Madrid either by the end of this month or in 2024.
