Real Madrid News
Real Madrid will have to fork out €150m for 19-year-old Liverpool, Man City target – report
It is no secret that Real Madrid have made Borussia Dortmund teenager Jude Bellingham their top transfer target for the summer of 2023.
The 19-year-old has emerged as one of the best young midfielders in Europe over the past couple of seasons and is on the radars of several top clubs, including Liverpool and Manchester City.
However, Real Madrid have been touted as the favourites to sign Bellingham, with recent reports suggesting that the England international sees a move to the Santiago Bernabeu as a ‘spectacular next step’ in his career.
But signing Bellingham could prove to be a costly affair for Real Madrid. According to BILD, Borussia Dortmund are aware that it will not be easy to keep hold of the 19-year-old at the club with the big clubs circling.
Unlike Erling Haaland, who left Dortmund for Manchester City last summer, Bellingham does not have a release clause in his contract with the Bundesliga outfit. And even though his market value is believed to be around €90 million, the Black and Yellows will demand 150 million for the teenager.
That will be a significant outlay for Bellingham and even though Real Madrid have the financial means to meet those demands, it will be interesting to see whether they are willing to splash such a huge amount for the 19-year-old.
Manchester City and Liverpool also have the wherewithal to splash such a huge amount, although the latter could be an unappealing destination for Bellingham if they miss out on Champions League football – they are currently ninth in the Premier League.
All in all, Bellingham seems set to become one of the most expensive footballers next summer and it remains to be seen if Real Madrid are forced to stump up €150 million or whether they negotiate a lower fee with Dortmund.
Dani Ceballos is one of the players who has Real Madrid on the fence after his recent resurgence. The club appeared certain to part ways with the player during the commencement of the 2022/23 season but no longer find the decision as straightforward.
According to reports from MARCA, Real Madrid are in no hurry to renew Ceballos’ contract. Though his deal runs out in the summer, the Merengues prefer to focus fully on the competitions they are alive in instead of entering auctions for his renewal.
Ceballos has given Los Blancos the signal that his priority is to stay and is waiting for an offer from the board. However, nobody from the administration has contacted him yet.
Sniffing a moment of opportunity, Atletico Madrid have entered the scene and conveyed their interest in signing the midfield star. Los Rojiblancos have already called his entourage twice in recent weeks and a move away from the Bernabeu cannot be ruled out.
At 26 years of age, the Spaniard wishes for regular starts and playing time. It would be difficult for such demands to be met in Real Madrid owing to the sheer number of young prodigies rising in the middle of Los Blancos.
Come next season, Ceballos could be lost in the mix of Aurelien Tchouameni, Eduardo Camavinga, Federico Valverde and veterans like Toni Kroos, while Jude Bellingham could also arrive.
Ceballos has made 19 appearances for the defending champions in La Liga this season, providing one assist in that duration. At just 10 starts and 44 minutes averaged per game, however, his role is clearly centred around the bench.
Moving to Atletico Madrid could thus work well in his favour for he is almost guaranteed playing time in Simeone’s system which is in dire need of a quality attacking midfielder.
The player is currently on international duty with La Roja for the Euro qualifiers. In the team’s opener against Norway, he came on at the hour mark and made a strong cameo with three key passes and a big chance created.
MK Wallace
November 1, 2022 at 11:04 am
It’s ok, Real won’t have to “fork out” a penny for Bellingham because he has already agreed to join City, something that was sorted MONTHS ago!
He’ll be replacing Gündoğan who did agree to return to Germany, however he’s having second thoughts because of offers from Spanish and the US. That doesn’t stop the Bellingham deal though!