Real Madrid News
Man City see Real Madrid target as one of their summer priorities, contacts made – Romano
The transfer race for Borussia Dortmund Jude Bellingham is set to dominate the headlines this summer as elite clubs like Real Madrid, Liverpool, and Manchester City will battle for his signing.
According to the latest update on the England star’s situation from Fabrizio Romano, Manchester City have made Bellingham one of their top priorities for the summer transfer window.
The Italian journalist claims that the 19-year-old Englishman is among the top targets for Ferran Soriano, Txiki Begiristain, and manager Pep Guardiola.
There are several question marks over the future of Bernardo Silva, who continues to be linked with Barcelona while Ilkay Gundogan’s contract with the Premier League champions expires at the end of the season.
It leaves room for the potential arrival of a new player in the middle of the park and Bellingham is seen as the ‘dream target’ by Manchester City and have already made contacts to explore a move.
However, they are very well aware of the serious competition offered by Liverpool and Real Madrid, who continue to push for the signing of the England international.
Los Blancos are also preparing for a transition in their midfield unit as the likes of Luka Modric and Toni Kroos are in the final phase of their respective careers.
Bellingham has been at the top of the wishlist for Real Madrid for a long time now and work has been put in to make his signing become a reality.
However, at the same time, the Merengues are aware that they might be unable to compete with the financial might of the Premier League clubs, which could leave them behind in the transfer race.
But, Liverpool’s struggles could see them miss out on qualification for the UEFA Champions League. And Manchester City are facing sanctions for breaches of the Financial Fair Play, which could play into Real Madrid’s hands.
Bellingham is yet to make a decision on his next move and it remains to be seen how things develop in the coming weeks.
Marco Asensio is fighting for his future at Real Madrid. The 27-year-old winger is out of contract at the end of the season and there is no concrete decision made by the club over his renewal as of yet.
Some reports had suggested that the club had tabled an offer worth €4 million per year, which the Spaniard did not like as he sought a higher pay packet closer to around €6 million-a-year.
With his future a subject of intense speculation, Asensio had been linked with a move away to Premier League clubs such as Arsenal and Liverpool.
Meanwhile, closer to home, there were strong links to Real Madrid’s arch-rivals Barcelona. Indeed, the Catalans have been touted as potential suitors for Asensio for quite some time now due to the fact that he is represented by Jorge Mendes.
The superagent has close ties with Barcelona president Joan Laporta and reports in Spain have suggested that the Real Madrid winger has, indeed, been offered to the current La Liga leaders.
Amidst these speculations, however, Asensio has seemingly made it clear as to where his heart lies as he awaits a decision on his future.
During last night’s El Clasico against Barcelona, the Real Madrid winger came on as a substitute and went on to score a goal, following which he celebrated at Camp Nou, pointing to the Real Madrid logo on his shirt, showing where his allegiances lie.
The goal, however, was disallowed by the VAR, and Los Blancos ended up losing the game 2-1 thanks to a stoppage-time winner by Franck Kessie.
Earlier today, Asensio took to Instagram and posted a picture of him celebrating with his finger pointing to the Real Madrid logo, reiterating his commitment to the club amidst the links to Barcelona.
As for his disallowed goal, it sparked an angry reaction from Carlo Ancelotti, who questioned the legitimacy of the decision made by the VAR during his post-match press conference.
