Isco to Real Madrid may work in Man City’s favour

This transfer window has seen a lot of the same players linked to nearly every club imaginable, and Isco is no exception. Having been linked with a number of clubs, it is now confirmed that the Spanish International will play for Real Madrid this summer. Manchester City have been linked with the player as former Malaga manager Manuel Pellegrini, who is now in charge of Man City, wanted to bring the highly-rated midfielder from his former club to the Etihad. But maybe this is not the end in the Isco to City saga.

Isco is a very promising midfielder and has shone for club and country in the last two seasons. Having starred for the Valencia B team, Malaga took advantage of a £5m release clause to get him in blue and white stripes. With a £35 million release clause in his contract, Malaga had set the tone for his future and asked for a sizeable sum for the promising youngster. Real Madrid and Man City would have no problem paying the money for Isco, but maybe he will find going to Real Madrid a frustrating part of his development.

Real Madrid already have Mesut Ozil, Kaka, Luka Modric, Angel Di Maria and Cristiano Ronaldo at their disposal. Even though he is regarded as a future star of Real Madrid, he will find his playing time limited as these players have formed a good working relationship and are earning serious money. Isco will have to fight to win his place and will almost certainly keep it when he gets his chance; but ultimately, he will have to make do with a spot on the bench as being a young player at Real Madrid can be a frustrating time.

Esteban Granero, Pedro Leon and Sergio Canales all found out pretty quickly a dream move to Real Madrid doesn’t always work out. Maybe Isco is better than Granero and Canales, but Real Madrid are not well-known for bringing young talent through the ranks, and tend to buy players instead. By bringing in the best players in the world, the term Galacticos is commonly used at Real Madrid, and Isco might find himself being pushed further down the pecking order as he will not be regarded as a Galactico yet. His age will be a factor as he will be thought of as an up-and-coming player, and so will have to spend some time on the bench until he proves that he can displace the likes of Ozil or Modric.

The other name that comes in to the equation here is Gareth Bale. If the Welshman does end up costing Madrid £85m, there is no way that he will be on the bench. He and Ronaldo would be starting every single game, which would leave Isco competing with Ozil, Modric and Di Maria for one spot in the team. With a World Cup coming up in the summer, for Isco to get in to an already absurdly talented Spain squad will be tough. There’s no way at all that he could do it from the bench.

Isco may find himself looking for a move next summer if Real Madrid buy themselves another Galactico after the World Cup; and with Man City likely to keep tabs on the Spanish International from now on, it would not be surprising to see him wear blue in 2014 or 2015.