What’s the story?
Real Madrid have reportedly made a €90 million bid for AS Monaco star, Thomas Lemar. Diario GOL reports that Florentino Perez has set his sights on getting the Frenchman this summer after Eden Hazard refused to move. Lemar has been in impressive form for the Ligue 1 side, scoring seven and assisting six in his 27 appearances for the club in the league this season. He's a versatile player who players on both sides of the wings.
In case you didn’t know...
Los Blancos are planning a Galacticos 3.0 this summer and were targeting the likes of De Gea, Eden Hazard, Marco Verratti and Paulo Dybala.
Hazard has rebuffed interest from Real Madrid by saying that he and his family are settled in London and that he has no intentions of leaving Chelsea. The Belgian is in red-hot form for The Blues' this season as they ease their way to the Premier League title.
Dybala has signed a new contract at Juventus, keeping him at the club until 2022. Verratti is keen on leaving Paris Saint-Germain in the summer but is said to be interested in joining Chelsea or Barcelona.
De Gea is the only one from the top targets list of the Whites who is interested in moving to Bernabeu in the summer. But that would end up costing Madrid a world record fee, and so, they are said to be eyeing a move for Donnarumma instead.
The heart of the matter
With Eden Hazard out of the picture, Zidane has asked the Madrid board to get him Lemar from Monaco. The winger is highly rated at the club, and along with Bernardo Silva, he has been influential in taking AS Monaco to the top of the Ligue 1 table.
James Rogriguez is on the verge of leaving Bernabeu in the summer with a move to Bayern Munich rumoured to be done. The Colombian has been benched a lot this season and was seeking a move away in January as well.
Real Madrid see Lemar as the ideal replacement for the James now and want to secure his signing before anyone else get's to negotiate with the French side. The 21-year-old is a target for Chelsea and Manchester City as well but is expected to stay at Monaco for 'another year or two', according to his father.
What’s next?
Real Madrid are on bound to spend big in the summer to land all the targets Zidane has in mind. AS Monaco will accept the €90 million bid without thinking twice as it is easily €25 million to €30 million more than what they expected for him.
Author’s Take
Are Real Madrid overpaying for Lemar? Yes. Is Lemar talented? Yes. But, is he worth paying €90 million for? Nope.
