Real Madrid News
Chelsea defender’s injury record could prevent Real Madrid from pursuing him – report
As we inch closer and closer to the summer transfer window, various media reports in Spain have claimed that Real Madrid will look to sign a new right-back. And, Chelsea star Reece James has been mentioned as one of the targets that the club are considering.
The England star has enjoyed a rapid rise to stardom over the past few years at Stamford Bridge which has put him on the radars of Real Madrid.
Given that Chelsea need to make sales this summer to balance their books after a crazy splurge in January, it has been reported that James could be available for a fee of around €50 million.
However, according to a report from AS, James’ track record with injuries could end up hurting his chances of joining Real Madrid, after the Englishman picked up yet another injury that has ruled him out for the season.
Only 23 years of age, James has endured quite an injury-riddled career at Chelsea, especially in the ongoing campaign.
The right-back missed a chunk of games in the first half of the season due to a knee injury and was not part of the England squad for the FIFA World Cup 2022 because of the same.
Soon after he returned to action post the World Cup break, James succumbed to yet another knee injury and missed a stretch of the season. Now, he is down with a thigh injury that has ruled him out for the remainder of the campaign.
Up until this point, James had already missed 18 games due to injury/fitness issues and will miss the remainder of Chelsea’s seven Premier League encounters.
Naturally, such a track record with injuries is bound to raise some concerns for Real Madrid, who are interested in signing him and were reported to be planning to make a significant investment to sign the 23-year-old.
With Dani Carvajal and Lucas Vazquez into their thirties, it is time for Los Blancos to lay down a succession plan at right-back. Whether they go after James or are discouraged by his latest injury setback remains to be seen.
Real Madrid have officially announced the first departure of the 2022/23 season as Marco Asensio leaves the club on a free transfer. The Spaniard was part of the Madrid setup for eight years, and leaves with three Champions Leagues and La Ligas to his name.
With Vinicius Jr, Rodrygo, and Eden Hazard in the team, Asensio was the only winger in the team who preferred to play on the right rather than on the left. His left-footedness was also crucial for this.
Madrid will now have to assess the market for replacements, even though they will be handed one themselves in the summer in the form of Brahim Diaz. The Spaniard finishes his loan spell at AC Milan in the summer, and will return to Madrid.
Madrid will have to make a final call on his future, but as of now, are ready to discuss a new long-term deal for and with Diaz, as per a report published by Fabrizio Romano. The extension will be valid until 2027.
Diaz, now 23, initially joined Real Madrid from Manchester City in 2019, completing a €18 million move in the search of game-time. Six appearances in six months later, though, he moved to AC Milan on loan, and has been there since.
However, getting him to stay at Madrid will be difficult, as the player evidently wants to continue at Milan for the foreseeable future. He even suggested his desire to continue in a recent interview.
“I’m happy here at Milan. I feel very good at this club, then I don’t know what is going to happen. I kissed the badge because that’s what I felt at that moment,” he said.
They want him to replace Asensio at the Santiago Bernabeu, but will not force him to stay if he wants to leave.
