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The European Champions Real Madrid have been the centre of attraction in this summer's transfer market after selling their star player Cristiano Ronaldo to Juventus.
With one of their most successful managers of all time Zinedine Zidane also being replaced with Julen Lopetegui, the 2018-19 season is believed to be a fresh challenge for Los Blancos.
However, it is not going to be easy for Madrid to successfully defend their European crown this season without their club legends - Zidane and Ronaldo. Some of their star players were believed to be considering departing the Santiago Bernabeu this summer as well.
The speculations of them leaving the Spanish capital were doing the rounds for quite some time. But all that seems unlikely now. Let us now look at three speculated Real Madrid transfers that might not happen this summer.
#1 Thibaut Courtois
The Belgian who joined Chelsea in 2011 before moving to Atletico Madrid on loan for three seasons has won two Premier League title's with the Blues: the 2014-15 and 2016-17 seasons.
Under the then manager Jose Mourinho, Chelsea won their fourth Premier League title in 2014-15 and Courtois was exceptional for Roman Abramovich's men with 74 saves and 13 clean sheets in 32 appearances.
With Petr Cech joining Arsenal in 2015, Courtois remained the Londoners' number one. Under Antonio Conte, Chelsea claimed the 2016-17 title in a dramatic fashion, and the Belgian was once again vital in the success with 68 saves and 16 clean sheets in 36 league appearances.
His Golden Glove winning performance at the 2018 FIFA World Cup with Belgium in Russia sparked speculations about his potential transfer. Courtois, who kept two clean sheets in the showpiece event against Panama and England finished third with the Red Devils at the World Cup.
The rumors about his possible move to Real Madrid have been doing the rounds for quite a long time. With the Costa Rican goal keeper Keylor Navas being out of favour at the Santiago Bernabeu, Los Blancos have been trying their best to land the Belgian at the Spanish capital this summer.
Chelsea are in no mood to let Courtois go without finding a new stopper. Although the player was desperate to leave Chelsea this summer, the deal has somehow taken a twist at the last moment, and it seems that the Belgian will stay in Stamford Bridge for another season.
All stats via transfermarkt
#2 Luka Modric
Modric who recently won the Golden Ball for his exploits at the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia has been amidst the transfer speculations for some time now. Modric signed for Real Madrid back in 2012 after his stint with the English Premier League club - Tottenham Hotspur.
Though he arguably struggled in his first season at Madrid under Mourinho, he excelled once Carlo Ancelotti took over the reigns.
The highly talented midfielder, who has won four the UEFA Champions League trophies with Real Madrid so far (2014, 2016, 2017 and 2018), has been an indomitable force in the Madrid midfield.
In the seven matches he played for Croatia at the World Cup, he scored two goals and had a pass success rate of 87.2 percent. Modric led Croatia to an unlikely runners-up finish behind the mighty French.
Earlier, the speculations were that the Serie A giants Inter Milan had approached Madrid for the potential transfer of the Croat who had reportedly requested President Florentino Perez to allow him to leave the Bernabeu this summer.
Replying to the speculation, Perez said that the Serie A giants must shell out the €750 million release clause set for the Croat to have any chance of luring him out of the Bernabeu. This will be almost thrice the current World record transfer amount, and the deal is highly unlikely to happen this summer.
#3 Mateo Kovacic
The Croatian who joined Real Madrid in 2015 after his stints with Dinamo Zagreb and Inter Milan, has so far made 73 appearances for Los Blancos.
In his three seasons at the Spanish capital, Kovacic has won three UEFA Champions League titles, two UEFA Super Cup, two FIFA Club World Cup, one Spanish Super Cup and a La Liga title.
The midfielder who has won 46 caps for his Nation, was approached by Manchester United recently. But he reportedly rejected the £53 million offer, citing he does not want to play under the Red Devils manager - Jose Mourinho.
Though Real Madrid's new manager Julen Lopetegui has made up his mind to sell the Croatian midfielder, it is highly unlikely that it will materialize any sooner as the Premier league transfer deadline ends on August 9.
With Chelsea not able to sell Courtois to Madrid and Tottenham Hotspur's budget being tight, the speculated transfer might not happen this summer.
