Real Madrid News
Real Madrid star’s move to Arsenal now ‘complicated’ due to €10 million salary demand
It became clear towards the fag end of Carlo Ancelotti’s second stint at Real Madrid that a 4-3-3 is not an optimal formation to extract the best out of the current squad.
With the arrival of a new manager, the club can expect a new formation with serious changes in the dynamics.
The most likely change that Xabi Alonso will bring in to restore balance, needless to say, is sacrificing an attacker for added presence in midfield.
Rodrygo Goes, on that front, is the most likely to lose his starting spot, especially with Vinicius Jr. and Kylian Mbappe both being undroppable.
The player, thus, has remained attentive to offers and is not opposed to leaving the club.
Operation getting complicated
Several clubs in the Premier League have been linked with a move for the Brazilian star with Liverpool and Manchester City dominating the headlines in recent years.
Earlier this month, however, Arsenal emerged as a serious candidates to land him.
As relayed in a recent report by Florian Plettenberg, talks between Arsenal and the player have been ongoing in recent hours but the move is only growing increasingly complicated.
After all, the Real Madrid star demands a net salary of €10 million per year, a figure Arsenal are unprepared to shell out at the moment.
Rodrygo, for his part, is willing to listen to offers and consider a departure but only if the right offer comes in. His taking a concession on wages appears highly unlikely at this point.
It thus remains to be seen if the English club can return with a better offer to the player or manage to convince him to trust the projects and give up a part of his wages.
In either case, Rodrygo’s departure from Real Madrid is no longer as unthinkable as it was a year ago.
After a month into the new season, Aurelien Tchouameni is finally back in action for Real Madrid.
The Frenchman made his first appearance of the season for the Merengues last night against Inter Milan after recovering from the muscular injury that delayed his campaign.
His return to fitness had raised questions over where he would fit into Mourinho’s plans.
Tchouameni has been a regular in Real Madrid’s midfield for several seasons under different managers, but the end of last season was far less straightforward.
His confrontation with Federico Valverde, combined with speculation over his future at the club, created uncertainty about his position. His lack of a proper pre-season also appeared to put him behind other midfield options.
Bernardo Silva had established himself as an important figure, while Eduardo Camavinga was also ahead of Tchouameni in terms of match fitness.
With Real Madrid looking for greater creativity in midfield, there were questions over whether the Frenchman would still be a first-choice player.
Key for Mourinho
According to AS (h/t Bernabeu Digital), however, Mourinho has no such doubts. Tchouameni remains a key player for the Portuguese coach and is expected to be a starter.
Mourinho sees the French international as a midfielder without a direct replacement in the squad.
For Jose, Tchouameni provides something that none of the other midfielders in the squad do – a more defensive and positional presence, combining his tactical discipline with considerable physical strength.
His ability to shield the defence and provide balance could be particularly important for a Real Madrid side that want to defend aggressively and attack quickly in transition.
For that reason, his absence at the start of the campaign has not changed the manager’s view of his importance.
Mourinho faces a midfield selection problem
The challenge for Mourinho now is finding a way to fit all the pieces together.
If Tchouameni is guaranteed a starting position and Valverde is considered untouchable as captain, the obvious consequence is that Bernardo could find himself starting from the bench.
The summer arrival had been given an important role in helping Real Madrid control and distribute possession from deeper positions.
However, with Tchouameni and Valverde both occupying midfield places, Mourinho cannot accommodate everyone in the same lineup.
How the Portuguese coach manages that competition will be interesting to see in the coming weeks.
