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What’s the story?
Real Madrid are not a club that spends in the winter transfer window but desperate times call for desperate measures. Florentino Perez and Zinedine Zidane have decided that the team needs new faces and they will be signing players next month.
Real Madrid are set to complete the signing Kepa Arrizabalaga in the first week in January according to reports in Marca. The Spanish media outlet claims that Los Blancos will be signing the goalkeeper from Athletic Bilbao for just €25 million.
In case you didn’t know...
Keylor Navas is 30-years-old right now and Zidane is keen on signing a shot-stopper who can be his long-term replacement. The Costa Rican is expected to be leaving the club with a deal with Lazio reportedly on the table.
The heart of the matter
Kepa Arrizabalaga has been stalling contract talks with Bilbao for a year now and the club has decided to cash-in on him. The goalkeeper's contract at the club ends at the end of the season and they do not want to let him leave for free.
Madrid are happy to pay €25 million for him and sign him up next month. The move will eventually end their interest in David De Gea, Hugo Lloris and Thibaut Courtois.
Manchester United and Chelsea made it clear that they will not be holding any negotiations with the Spanish giants for their goalkeepers, while Tottenham were not willing to let Lloris leave for anything less than €60 million.
What’s next?
Arrizabalaga will move to Bernabeu in January but will start playing regularly only from the start of next season. He might be loaned out for the rest of the season, mostly back to Bilbao itself.
Author’s Take
Arrizabalaga will be a brilliant signing for Madrid but he's not yet on the level of De Gea and Courtois. Should he made a few mistakes in his first few matches, Madrid will reignite their interest in the two Premier League goalkeepers for sure.
