Reports: Chelsea superstar 'inching ever closer' to Real Madrid

What's the story?

According to Marca, Chelsea's Eden Hazard is 'inching ever closer' to make a move to Real Madrid. If the aforementioned report is to be believed, the Spanish giants have come to the conclusion that Hazard is the perfect long-term replacement for Cristiano Ronaldo and can easily take up the leading role at the club.

The Spanish outlet claims that the 28-year-old himself is also bent on moving to Real Madrid, but has asked Los Blancos to hold up until the end of the season. He has already rejected Chelsea's attempts to tie him down to a long-term contract.

In case you didn't know...

The void left by Cristiano Ronaldo when he completed the transfer to Juventus has had a detrimental effect on Real Madrid's season so far. As it stands, they are 4th on La Liga table having managed 33 points in 19 matches.

Even before Ronaldo's transfer, Real Madrid were keeping close tabs on Hazard and the interest has only intensified following the Portuguese's departure. The Belgian's current contract with the Premier League club is set to expire in June 2020.

The heart of the matter...

Chelsea are acutely aware of Hazard's transfer saga and have set the asking price at €100 million. It is believed that the Blues are not ready to budge on their valuation, with Marina Granovskaia to use the transfers of Paul Pogba and Neymar to demonstrate the condition of transfer market.

So far, the former Lille ace has contributed 10 goals and 10 assists from 21 outings in the Premier League this season.

Rumour rating: 7/10

Eden Hazard's interest in joining Real Madrid is well-documented. Besides, Los Blancos are in dire need of a marquee signing considering their present situation.

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What's next?

Real Madrid will have to hold fire until the summer transfer window when they can finally pounce on their long-held target.