Arsenal can breathe a huge sigh of relief and finalise an advanced €60m signing after Real Madrid turned their attention to a gigantic raid on Manchester City instead, according to a report.
The Gunners look destined to finish runners-up in the Premier League for the third straight season. However, Mikel Arteta has his Arsenal side clearly trending in the right direction and their march to the semi-finals of the Champions League is evidence of that.
To go one better next term, plans are already underway for a blockbuster summer transfer window. The Daily Mail led the way back in January when revealing Arsenal had lined up Martin Zubimendi for the summer.
The Real Sociedad and Spain midfielder, 26, can be signed via a €60m release clause. A deal was said to be very advanced, though obviously cannot be officially completed until the summer window opens.
As such, and while Arsenal remain confident they’ll be the ones to snap up the midfield maestro, speculation has begun to swirl of a Real Madrid hijack.
Indeed, Los Blancos are also in the market for a classy midfielder having failed to replace Toni Kroos who retired last year. Luka Modric, 39, will also need to replaced sooner rather than later.
FootMercato rang alarm bells in north London a few days ago when claiming Zubimendi now favours a move to Real Madrid if he does leave Real Sociedad.
And while the latest from Cadena SER has confirmed Zubimendi is a player of interest at Real Madrid, he is NOT their priority target.
That honour falls to Man City ace and current Ballon d’Or holder, Rodri. The 28-year-old is the ‘chosen one’ at Real Madrid and the club believe ‘negotiations are possible.’
Real Madrid prioritising Rodri over Zubimendi
Real Madrid do have a lingering doubt about Rodri and it’s an understandable one – will he be the same player upon returning from knee surgery?
However, Rodri’s game has never been based around pace and players like Virgil van Dijk have proven it is possible to be the same level of superstar after an ACL injury.
Aiding Real Madrid’s efforts to sign the Spaniard could be veteran defender Dani Carvajal who is understood to be a close personal friend of Rodri’s.
Another factor that could greatly aid a transfer’s chances is Man City receiving a severe punishment in their FFP case with the Premier League.
READ MORE: Man City FFP: Predicting where 10 star players would go if relegated
In any case, what is clear is Real Madrid prefer Rodri to Zubimendi and even if Zubimendi favours joining Real Madrid over Arsenal as FootMercato claimed, there’s no guarantee the LaLiga giants will actually table a bid.
Cadena SER summarised the situation when stating: ‘Real Madrid has a second option, which is Zubimendi. The problem is that Arsenal appears to have more than just contact with the Spanish player.’
They continued: ‘Arsenal considers the Real Sociedad player to be very advanced (if not outright finalised) since last summer.
‘This doesn’t worry Real Madrid much, as they have doubts about whether this player is the right fit for their midfield.
‘Obviously, they like him and know him, but he’s not a priority option, quite the opposite of what Arsenal are saying.’
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