What’s the story?
According to reports in Spain, Real Madrid will sell both Alvaro Morata and James Rodriguez in the summer transfer window to fund a move for AS Monaco striker Kylian Mbappe. Both players are currently on long-term deals and will cost a small fortune for any club trying to prise them away from the Santiago Bernabeu.
Morata looks set to join Manchester United for a fee in the region of £64m (€73m). The Red Devils are understood to have agreed on a deal even though other clubs such as Chelsea, AC Milan and Arsenal were also interested in securing the Spanish striker’s signature.
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Meanwhile, Real are looking to offload Rodriguez to Paris Saint-Germain for a fee of £62m – which is approximately the same fee they paid to Monaco for his signature in 2014 after his memorable World Cup campaign.
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Morata has been a bit-part player this season and has only made 14 starts in the league, making 12 appearances from the bench. He has scored 15 goals but is unhappy to play second fiddle to Karim Benzema who has had a poor season with just 11 goals to his name.
Morata’s contract runs till 2021 which will ensure Real put a hefty price tag on him and he could break the record for the most expensive Spanish player in history, costing more than Chelsea’s £50m transfer fee for Fernando Torres.
James, on the other hand, has a contract until 2020 and has shown that he is ready to leave Real Madrid in search of more regular playing time. The Colombian has made only 13 starts (nine as a substitute) for his eight league goals.
Also read: Manchester United set to announce Alvaro Morata’s signing on Monday
The heart of the matter
The two players have never really broken into the starting lineups on a regular basis thanks to the presence of Benzema, Toni Kroos, Isco and Luka Modric. There is no displacing these stars in Zinedine Zidane’s lineup. Real see no other option but to sell the two before their market value drops, making it a win-win situation for both the club and the players.
Mbappe is the next big thing in football and the 18-year-old’s move will definitely break the transfer record. He could even be the first player in history to cost more than £100m.
Video: Mbappe’s 2016/17 highlights
Author’s take
Even though both Morata and James have shown some consistency in the limited time they have received on the pitch, they weren’t enough to convince the French manager to change his mind. Ultimately, Zidane cannot change a winning combination, proved by the fact that he won the Liga and Champions League double.
However, signing Mbappe may not be as easy as it looks. The teenager’s stock is only set to rise and Monaco could hold on to him for at least another season. It would be ideal for the 18-year-old to stay grounded at the club where he made a name for himself before a big move.
Mbappe has a long career ahead of him and it would be wise for him to continue his development in Ligue 1 before making a move abroad.
