Reports: Real Madrid eye £85 million rated star as Gareth Bale replacement

What’s the story?

Real Madrid are planning a shock move for Antonie Griezmann according to reports in Spain. The Atletico Madrid star is Zinedine Zidane's top priority should Gareth Bale decide to leave the club in the summer.

Reports suggested that Barcelona had activated Griezmann's release clause and were in talks with him yesterday. Los Blancos have stepped up their chase and are also willing to meet the release clause.

In case you didn’t know...

Gareth Bale has been in and out of the starting XI because of his injuries. The Welshman has made his 19 appearances for the Whites in La Liga this season, and one of them was a dismal 39 minute first half appearance in the El Clasico.

Real Madrid fans are also not happy with the star and have been asking the club to sell him. The Clasico performance added more fuel to this fire, and the hate among the Madrid fans for the former Tottenham star grew.

The heart of the matter

Griezmann has been in fine form this season, scoring 26 goals and assisting 11 in all competitions for Atletico Madrid. Jose Mourinho was desperate to sign him, but the player was not willing to move to Manchester because of the city's weather.

With Griezmann not interested in joining them, Mourinho has now set sights on signing Bale. The Welshman has been a target for the Red Devils ever since the time of Sir Alex Ferguson, but the player was never interested in joining them.

However, with things falling apart for Bale at Bernabeu, he may finally opt to move to Old Trafford in the summer. With United taking away Bale from Madrid, Los Blancos have now chosen to sign Griezmann from their rivals.

Atletico Madrid will have no say in the transfer if Real activate the French international's £85 million worth release clause.

What’s next?

It looks like the French striker will have to choose between Barcelona and Real Madrid in the summer as the two Spanish giants are keen on activating his release clause. Manchester United were the ones who were heavily linked with him, but after his comment on the city's weather, the Red Devils dropped their interest and started looking for alternatives.

If signed by Real Madrid, he will be the 2nd player they would be snatching from Atletico this summer. Theo Hernandez has also reportedly agreed to join Los Blancos and has also passed the medical according to reports.

Author’s Take

Griezmann will have a tough task of picking his next club in the summer. He will get to play more at Bernabeu compared to Camp Nou but will be one of the most hated men in the Spanish capital for joining an arch-rival