Real Madrid News
Manchester City confident Real Madrid target will sign a new contract at club
Real Madrid have already confirmed the imminent arrival of Ibrahima Konate on a free transfer, but remain on the lookout for one more centre-back.
Manchester City mainstay Josko Gvardiol, in that regard, has emerged as a pivotal target for Los Blancos heading into the summer.
The Croatian international still has two years left on his contract at the Etihad Stadium, but it has been suggested that he is willing to leave the club for Real Madrid after Pep Guardiola’s exit.
Manchester City believe Gvardiol will stay
However, according to Simon Bajkowski of Manchester Evening News, Manchester City expect Gvardiol to stay put at the club this summer.
In fact, there is confidence within the club that the 25-year-old defender will sign a new contract with the club even if more negotiations are needed to close an agreement.
Only thing that can change the situation is if the player himself asks to leave and Manchester City receive an astronomical offer for him, which, as things stand, they see as extremely unlikely.
What does this mean for Real Madrid?
Real Madrid, for their part, see Gvardiol as the perfect target for their needs, given that he is a left-footed centre-back who can also play on the left-back position whenever needed.
As such, they are prepared to go all out for him as long as Manchester City do not hold out for a huge transfer fee. But given the Premier League giants’ current stance they are likely to ask for an enormous amount of money to dissuade any and all suitors.
It makes the possibility of a transfer difficult, forcing Real Madrid to look at other alternatives in the market.
Real Madrid News
Jose Mourinho was always clear about getting rid of Real Madrid midfielder this summer – report
Real Madrid’s summer transfer window was largely successful, not only in terms of securing key arrivals but also in terms of letting go of players who had no place in the dynamics.
One player who stood out in the second category was Dani Ceballos as the Spanish midfielder was frozen out of Real Madrid’s starting dynamics for several years before his eventual departure.
In the end, the club simply let the player leave as a free agent by accepting a contract termination as they saw the salary space freed as a win compared to his presence.
Mourinho’s clear stance
As confirmed in a recent report by Diario AS, Real Madrid’s new manager Jose Mourinho has no doubt that he did not count on Ceballos for the ongoing season.
Being the straightforward communicator that he is, the Portuguese manager directly informed Ceballos that he did not count on him in any capacity, speaking out loud about a fact that was known as an open secret for a long time.
Having clarity that his situation at the club was not going to change, Ceballos pressed to leave and eventually had his way as the club allowed him to walk out of the front door with no transfer fee.
Times were tense
The Spanish outlet also add that the decision to let the player leave with a contract termination was not easy for Real Madrid to accept, especially given that it is a last resort.
In the negotiations between Ceballos and the Real Madrid hierarchy, there were some moments filled with tension and disagreements.
In fact, there was even an initial exit agreement that was reached which was cancelled in the hope of a better outcome.
Eventually, however, both parties reached a fitting resolution and Real Madrid enabled the player’s departure without any hurdles and Ceballos went on to join Real Betis.
Even that move required the player to take a massive cut on his salary, but the saga worked out well for both clubs as the player. From Real Madrid’s perspective, the space created on the team’s roster was worth its weight in gold.
