What’s the story?
Real Madrid take on Barcelona in the El Clasico this weekend, but the war between the clubs has begun way before that. Los Blancos have set their sights on signing Barcelona's top target and are ready for an epic fight in the transfer market.
According to Diario GOL, Zinedine Zidane has asked the Madrid board to get him Philippe Coutinho from Liverpool this summer. The Frenchman sees him as the ideal player for his squad right now and wants to land him at any cost.
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Barcelona have been tracking Coutinho for quite some time now and have been trying their nest to lure him to Camp Nou. The Catalan side have been trying to hold talks with Liverpool, but the Premier League side are in no mood to let go of their best player.
Coutinho was signed for Liverpool by Brendan Rodgers in 2013 for just £8.5 million from Inter Milan. He has since then gone on to become a world-class player and has been the best player for Liverpool in the last two seasons.
Neymar and Ronaldinho have been courting the Brazilian to join the Catalan side by praising him now and then. They have also made it openly clear how the midfielder would fit in easily at the club.
The heart of the matter
Real Madrid are planning a squad overhaul in the summer and have identified Coutinho as one of the players they need to sign. Zidane is keen on getting the Brazilian as he wants someone of his stature to play in the #10 role.
Despite having Isco and Asensio in the squad, the Madrid manager intends to get a new central attacking midfielder in the summer. They are also after numerous other players but have made Coutinho the top priority as their arch-rivals, Barcelona are also chasing him.
Los Blancos are reportedly ready to send Toni Kross to Manchester United to secure the signing of David De Gea, while James Rodriguez has also been linked with a move to Old Trafford. Eden Hazard has refused to move to Bernabeu this summer and hence, the Whites have set sights on signing Thomas Lemar from AS Monaco.
Apart from these players, Alvaro Morata is set to be replaced by Kylian Mbappe while Karim Benzema is set to be dethroned by Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
What’s next?
Real Madrid and Barcelona will launch bids for Coutinho in the coming weeks to secure the signing of the midfielder as soon as possible. However, Liverpool will try to rebuff all interest for their star player but will eventually end up selling once the player decides he wants to move.
Author’s Take
Not really sure where Coutinho will fit at Real Madrid but in Spain, you see a lot of 'revenge signings' going on these days. Andre Gomes was set for a move to Real Madrid but, Barcelona signed him up just so that Los Blancos don't get him! Will this be a similar thing?
