Real Madrid News
Real Madrid trailing Manchester City, Liverpool in race for teenage sensation
According to Christian Falk, Real Madrid are trailing Manchester City and Liverpool in the race to sign Jude Bellingham.
The Borussia Dortmund midfielder has been in sensational form for both club and country, attracting the attention of some of the top teams in Europe. However, it seems like Real Madrid are facing stiff competition from the Premier League giants in the race to sign the young Englishman.
Real Madrid are in desperate need of a new midfielder due to the contract situations of their current midfield stalwarts, Toni Kroos and Luka Modric. Both are in the final stages of their respective careers, with Kroos even flirting with the idea of early retirement.
Additionally, there are also uncertainties over the future of Dani Ceballos.
Bellingham has been on Real Madrid’s radar for a long time due to his rapid rise to prominence at Borussia Dortmund. The 19-year-old midfielder has shown maturity beyond his years and has been compared to some of the greatest midfielders of all time. He has also been a key player for the England national team.
However, Real Madrid’s pursuit of Bellingham has hit a stumbling block due to economic reasons. Both Liverpool and Manchester City have more financial firepower than Real Madrid, making it difficult for the Spanish giants to compete in the transfer market.
Real Madrid, in the past, have appeared quite reluctant in meeting Dortmund’s hefty price tag for Bellingham, which is expected to exceed the €120 million mark.
In that case, Los Blancos may have to rethink their transfer strategy in the summer, especially when it comes to signing a midfielder. Fortunately, they have no shortage of alternatives and have been heavily linked with a move for Spanish starlet Gabri Veiga, among others.
Real Madrid are back in action tomorrow in La Liga as they take on Elche at Estadio Manuel Martinez Valero on Matchday 6.
The Merengues go into the game on the back of a solid 4-1 win over Rayo Vallecano at the Santiago Bernabeu and will be eager to build on that, especially with the Madrid derby coming up later in the week.
Ahead of the trip to Elche, Jose Mourinho has announced the squad list of players that will be at his disposal for the game tomorrow night.
There are no new returns to the squad as Real Madrid continue to be without Eder Militao, Ferland Mendy, and Rodrygo Goes for the game.
Mourinho could look to make changes to his starting lineup, keeping an eye on the derby at the weekend, which could potentially open the doors for someone like Aurelien Tchouameni to start, having been eased back into the thick of things after return from injury.
There could be some rotations in defence as well, with the likes of Antonio Rudiger and Trent Alexander-Arnold hoping to get some action on the pitch.
It remains to be seen if Yan Diomande starts another game after featuring from the get-go against Rayo at the weekend, especially considering that Arda Guler has been a key player for Mourinho’s team.
Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius Jr., and Jude Bellingham have started all matches so far and it will be interesting to see if one or all of them are given a break with an eye on the derby.
📋✅ ¡Nuestros convocados!
— Real Madrid C.F. (@realmadrid) September 14, 2026
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