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In scenes which would have surely shocked all Chelsea fans, Eden Hazard came out earlier last week to state that he wishes his Real Madrid move could pull through.
The 28-year-old has been one of the most sought after players by Real Madrid, with the Spanish giants' interest in him running back a couple of seasons. However, they have largely been rebuffed in their pursuits.
New developments such as Hazard's interest and the departure of Ronaldo means that the transfer could however come to fruition sooner rather than later.
Eden Hazard has been the backbone of Chelsea's attack throughout his stay at Stamford Bridge and getting a replacement for him if he does depart would be topmost on Chelsea's priorities.
The 2015 PFA Player of the Year is undoubtedly one of the best players in the world and as such replacing him would be almost impossible, as finding a player with his abilities and skillset would be rather difficult. However, the club must bring in a replacement (albeit on a lesser level).
In this piece, we shall be taking a look at five wingers who Chelsea could sign to replace the Belgian if he departs for Real Madrid.
#5 Leon Bailey
Highly sought-after following his displays for Bayer Leverkusen in the Bundesliga, the 21-year-old was the subject of numerous bids from most of Europe's heavyweights, leading the German club to place the rather ridiculous fee of €100m on him.
It was not just clubs who were interested in Bailey though, with multiple countries including England and Jamaica seeking to get him to represent them on the international scene.
Bailey had his breakthrough season in 2917/2018 when he scored nine goals and created a further six assists from 30 Bundesliga matches and even though he has dropped off in productivity this season, scoring just two goals and registering one assist from 20 Bundesliga matches this term, his talent is however not in doubt.
Possessing pace and technique, Bailey is still raw on the edges and would not offer the level of productivity Hazard currently does. However, being relatively young, he has the potential to improve and would be a mainstay of the Chelsea lineup for years to come if the move goes through.
#4 Marco Asensio
The Spanish forward showed a lot of promise following his breakout season for Real Madrid in 2017 (where he scored in the UCL final against Juventus) and further solid displays in victories over Barcelona and Manchester United in the Spanish and European Super Cups of the following seasons gave more indications of his abilities.
The departure of Cristiano Ronaldo opened up space for the 23-year-old and it was expected that he would be one of the players to usher the club into the new era.
Things have however not quite panned out like that for Asensio, as he has struggled to exert his influence on matches and currently finds himself out of the first team picture having struggled for form throughout the season.
There are real indications that Asensio is not a part of Solari's plans at the Bernabeu and if he does not see an upturn in fortunes in the coming weeks, he could well be on his way out the club and Chelsea would represent an adequate destination for the two-time Champions League winner.
#3 Riyad Mahrez
The 2016 PFA Player of the Year, Mahrez captured the imagination of the world following his scintillating displays in helping Leicester to her unlike Premier League triumph in 2016, which led Manchester City to make a major bid for the Algerian in January 2018 that was rejected by Leicester prompting Mahrez to go on a strike in a bid to force through the move.
Mahrez finally saw his dream transfer completed last summer when he completed a club record move to Manchester City, to team up with the defending Premier League champions.
Despite beginning the season well and making vital contributions, Mahrez currently finds himself playing a diminished role at The Etihad stadium.
The sheer amount of quality available to Pep Guardiola in attack means that breaking into the starting eleven is always going to be a mean task for even the highest quality players, as top class forwards like Raheem Sterling, Leroy Sane, Sergio Aguero, Gabriel Jesus and Riyad Mahrez all compete for limited starting spots.
Mahrez is a player of the highest quality who needs constant playing time to showcase his brilliance, hence he is unlikely to remain too happy by his current situation at City and Chelsea would be placed on high alert if there is no improvement in his predicament, as the Algerian could offer a different dimension to Chelsea's attack with his penetrative runs and mazy dribbles.
#2 Malcom
Arguably the most controversial transfer of the last summer transfer window, Malcom was seemingly on his way to signing for Roma (with the club announcing his arrival on twitter and numerous fans waiting for him at the Airport) before Barcelona swooped in with a last-minute offer to sway him over to Camp Nou.
To say that the move has backfired on the Brazilian would be putting it mildly, as Malcom has struggled to make any sort of meaningful contribution to the Barcelona cause almost eight months after his controversial arrival.
The 21-year-old has made just 14 appearances in all competitions for the Balugrana, with his only starts coming in Copa Del Rey matches (although he did score a brilliant goal in the Copa El Clasico clash with Real Madrid).
The Brazilian is yet to score or assist in seven LaLiga matches and with the form of Ousmane Dembele as well as omnipresence of Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi ably backed by Phillippe Coutinho, it is safe to say that Malcom would not be seeing an improvement in his playing minutes anytime soon and Chelsea would do well to end his Barcelona misery by bringing him to Stamford Bridge.
#1 Gareth Bale
One the most expensive player in the world, Gareth Bale has seen his stock fall considerably from his PFA Player of the Year winning days at Tottenham and currently finds himself out of sorts at an ever improving Real Madrid.
The Welshman was expected the be the highest beneficiary of Cristiano Ronaldo's sale to Juventus, as it afforded him to be the main man at the club having been in the shadow of the Portuguese for the last five seasons.
It has however not gone to plan for the 29-year-old, as he has struggled to influence matches in the manner which Real Madrid's record goalscorer did.
Bale has scored just five goals and registered two assists from 17 Liga matches, which is a far cry from the figures expected off him at the start of the season and his poor form has cost him a place in the starting lineup, as Solari increasingly looks to favor a front three of Lucas Vasquez, Karim Benzema and the ever-improving Vinicius Jr.
For all of his struggles, Gareth Bale is still a world class player and one of the very best forwards in the world on his day who would undoubtedly improve any team he joins and Chelsea could get a good deal for him by using him as a makeweight in the deal to sell Hazard to Real Madrid.
