Real Madrid News
Juventus make contact with out-of-favour Real Madrid defender over January move
Alvaro Odriozola finds himself in an extremely difficult position at Real Madrid. Having returned from a decent enough loan spell at Fiorentina, the Spaniard was expected to move on permanently in the summer window.
However, no move materialised and Odriozola ended up staying put at the Santiago Bernabeu, even though he has no part to play in Carlo Ancelotti’s plans for the season.
Indeed, Odriozola is behind Dani Carvajal and Lucas Vazquez in the right-back slot while the likes of Nacho and Antonio Rudiger have also been used in the position at times.
The 26-year-old ace is the only Real Madrid first-team player to not have played a single minute of competitive football in the ongoing campaign.
Given his situation, an exit in the January transfer window could be on the cards and Italian giants Juventus have seemingly shown an interest.
According to journalist Santi Aouna on Foot Mercato, Juve watched Odriozola from close quarters during his loan stint at Fiorentina last season and ready to offer him an escape route in the winter.
It is further claimed that the Bianconeri have already made first contact with the Real Madrid star’s entourage. The idea would be to take the former Real Sociedad ace on a six-month loan deal until the end of the season.
Real Madrid, for their part, are unlikely to be affected by Odriozola’s departure as they can replace him with Castilla’s Vinicius Tobias.
With the 26-year-old’s contract expiring in 2024, what remains to be seen is whether the Spanish capital outfit seek a permanent departure or are prepared to send him out on loan.
Real Madrid News
Real Madrid captain Benzema still not 100% fit, suffering from ankle discomfort – report
Karim Benzema put in another decrepit display as Real Madrid suffered a 2-1 defeat to FC Barcelona on Sunday night, which all but ended their hopes of defending the La Liga title.
The 35-year-old had sat out of Los Blancos‘ previous La Liga encounter against RCD Espanyol due to ankle discomfort, but returned for the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 tie versus Liverpool.
While Benzema scored in that game, he hobbled off the pitch with his ankle issue resurfacing. It led to him missing training last Friday, but returned to the squad for El Clasico after participating in training on Saturday.
However, he looked rusty and uninspiring during the defeat on Sunday at Spotify Camp Nou. Now, ABC (h/t Madrid Xtra), is reporting that Benzema is still not near 100% fitness and is struggling with his ankle issue.
It is further claimed that the Real Madrid captain continues to feel discomfort game after game.
Despite this being the situation, Carlo Ancelotti continues to play his ace striker in almost every match.
But the blame must be shared by the club as well, as they did not sign a new centre-forward in the summer or in January when they were aware of the striker’s fitness issues this season.
The Merengues let go of Luka Jovic and Borja Mayoral in the summer and did not sign a replacement, leaving Benzema and the out-of-favour Mariano Diaz as the only options at the manager’s disposal.
Rodrygo did well on occasions when deployed as a No.9, but it evidently clear that Real Madrid cannot go through an entire season relying on a 35-year-old centre-forward.
Alvaro Rodriguez may have emerged as an option of late, but Real Madrid will be repeating the same mistake again if they do not go for a new striker before the next season starts.
