Real Madrid News
Real Madrid keeping tabs on 16-year-old Manchester City, United target
Rangers’ 16-year-old starlet Bailey Rice is being monitored by several top teams across Europe, and if a report from 90min is to be believed, Real Madrid appear to be one of them.
Rice, a product of Motherwell youth academy, only joined Rangers in June 2022 and went on to make his professional debut in February 2023 under Michael Beale, who took over Rangers’ reigns in November after acting as an assistant to Steven Gerrard.
Among the club who are interested in Rice’s signature are FC Porto, AS Monaco, Manchester City, Manchester United and Newcastle United.
Amidst all this, Bundesliga sides Borussia Dortmund, RB Leipzig and Bayer Leverkusen are also said to be keeping tabs on the youngster, meaning that if Real are to make any effort, they must fend off as many as eight suitors.
Interestingly enough, Bundesliga has developed a reputation for being the hotbed of talents coming from the United Kingdom. If one has to put their right mind into it, names such as Jadon Sancho and Jude Bellingham must ideally pop up.
Furthermore, Manchester City’s interest in Rice goes way before he joined Rangers last year. Nearly a year has passed and Rangers are in no mood to lose their prized asset.
The aforementioned outlet says that the Scottish side will not let Rice leave without a fight mostly because his manager is said to be a big fan of the midfielder. Thanks to his extreme athleticism and brilliant progress in training and at youth levels, he has been called up to the senior squad.
In fact, when he stepped onto the field in February against Livingston, he became the youngest player to ever feature in a league game for the club. What was special about his debut was the fact that 24 hours before the game, he captained Scotland’s Under-17s against Switzerland.
“He is only 16 and not often does a young boy play for Scotland in Spain on Friday afternoon and then comes back to make his debut for Rangers on Saturday,” Beale said of the youngster.
Real Madrid have made it a point to sign young talent with potential from across the globe in recent years. They have already secured the services of Endrick from Palmeiras and are looking at several other such prospects, with Rice among them.
Before he was hired by Bayern Munich as the direct replacement for Julian Nagelsmann, Thomas Tuchel was closely linked with a move to Real Madrid at the end of the season.
The German tactician had kept a close eye on the development at Santiago Bernabeu, especially with coach Carlo Ancelotti facing immense pressure following the club’s poor performances in domestic competitions.
A recent report from Jorge Picon has offered more details on the Tuchel saga, suggesting that the coach was even learning Spanish during his time at Ibiza, anticipating a potential move to Real Madrid at the end of the season.
There were even contacts made between Tuchel’s entourage and Real Madrid. Although the talks were positive, the two sides were not able to reach an agreement.
Real Madrid did not guarantee him the job. They had informed Tuchel that Ancelotti may continue at the Bernabeu in the event the club win the UEFA Champions League this season.
This bit of uncertainty played a critical role in convincing Tuchel to join Bayern Munich instead. The former Chelsea boss was hired as a direct replacement for Nagelsmann, who was sacked after a poor season in the Bundesliga by the club’s high standards.
However, Tuchel’s move to Bayern appears to be a missed opportunity on the German’s part, as Real Madrid have recently intensified their search for a new manager.
It is clear that the club’s hierarchy is yet to reach a consensus over the future of Ancelotti, with some believing that a change is necessary come the end of the season. In fact, the club’s president Florentino Perez has been an admirer of Tuchel’s compatriot Nagelsmann.
The coaching prodigy is one of the candidates to replace Ancelotti in the summer, though it is Mauricio Pochettion who is reportedly leading the race so far.
