Real Madrid News
Real Madrid eyeing €40m German defender, player would be open to ‘dream’ move
While Real Madrid have a top-quality squad at their hands, one position that has always sparked debate is the left-back slot. Ferland Mendy has been at the club for four years and has become a permanent fixture in the side.
The French ace enjoys the faith of manager Carlo Ancelotti, but some officials within the club do not seem to rate him as highly as the manager. Indeed, recent reports suggested that Los Blancos were undecided to renew Mendy or sell him in the summer.
Amidst the speculation over Mendy’s situation, numerous left-backs have been linked with a move to the Santiago Bernabeu. Former defenders like Fran Garcia and Miguel Gutierrez are on Real Madrid’s radars while Bayern Munich’s Alphonso Davies is also being monitored.
Now, according to Mundo Deportivo, Real Madrid have set their sights on RB Leipzig and Germany left-back David Raum as a possible transfer target.
The 24-year-old left-back made his name at TSG Hoffenheim, whom he joined from boyhood club Greuther Furth in 2021. And a year later, he was signed by RB Leipzig this past summer, in a deal worth €26 million.
Raum has made 22 appearances for the Bundesliga club and has registered one assist. The left-back has also become the first-choice for the German national team under Hansi Flick and has collected 14 caps already, with two of those coming in the ongoing FIFA World Cup 2022.
Raum’s growth has seemingly captured the attention of Real Madrid. His contract with Leipzig runs until the summer of 2027 though and Los Blancos would have to shell out €40 million to sign the German international, as per the report.
What could work in the Merengues’ favour is that Raum recently admitted that it would be a dream for him to join the club if they ever came calling.
“It would be a dream, maybe. I’m not closing any doors. I’m very happy at Leipzig, but Madrid is a crazy club,” he had said.
There is no way back for Eden Hazard at Real Madrid. The Belgian international has not given the management any reason to have faith in his abilities over his past four seasons at the club and is unsurprisingly the most important departure for the Merengues in the summer.
Hazard has one more year on his contract in Madrid. However, it is clear that Carlo Ancelotti does not trust him and that any potential replacement manager in the summer will echo his stance.
According to reports from Mundo Deportivo, Fenerbahce are willing to go all out to sign Hazard this summer. The Turkish side have made the former Chelsea their prime target, yet face a steep task ahead of them.
The 32-year-old is hellbent on seeing out his contract with Los Blancos despite seeing his career sink right before his eyes. It thus becomes complicated for the party to lure away the forward, especially in a competition outside Europe’s top five leagues.
Fenerbahce attempted to sign the winger in the recently concluded winter transfer market. They reached an agreement with Real Madrid but failed to get over the line as they could not convince the player of the move.
The biggest obstacle for the Turkish side will be convincing Hazard to make the move by letting go of his lucrative contract in Madrid. The chances are slim, but not impossible.
Hazard has made just three league appearances and one start for Ancelotti’s side this season in La Liga, a steep fall from last season’s 18 and seven respectively.
His last appearance for the team came back in January when Real Madrid faced Cacereno in the Copa del Rey. In La Liga however, he last played in September 2022 in a 4-1 win over Mallorca.
