Real Madrid star in contact with Arsenal and Liverpool amid reports of January move: Reports

Real Madrid midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni has reportedly maintained contact with Arsenal and Liverpool ahead of the January transfer window.

This is as per reports from Spanish outlet El Nacional (via Football Transfers), which suggest the Frenchman could look for pastures anew.

Aurelien Tchouameni signed for Real Madrid from AS Monaco for a whopping €80 million in July 2022. A year and a half into his time at the club, the player is struggling for game time due to the sheer competition for midfield spots.

Carlo Ancelotti has to pick three players from Toni Kroos, Luka Modric, Eduardo Camavinga and Federico Valverde, with the latter two usually getting the nod ahead of Tchouameni.

The 23-year-old has made 65 appearances for Real Madrid across competitions, scoring one goal and providing four assists. However, he suffered a fatigue fracture in October and has been out of action since.

Arsenal and Liverpool maintain their interest in the talented midfielder despite his injury woes, with the two Premier League giants entangled in a closely-fought title race. Signing a player of Aurelien Tchouameni's caliber in January could potentially be a statement that could eventually be a title-winning move.

Both teams have multiple options in the middle of the park, with Arsenal signing Kai Havertz and Declan Rice to bolster their options ahead of the ongoing season. The Reds, on the other hand, signed Dominik Szoboszlai, Ryan Gravenberch and Wataru Endo.

However, both Arsenal and Liverpool believe they are one marquee midfielder away from having formidable depth and Tchouameni could alleviate those concerns.

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Real Madrid and Arsenal among highest-rated Champions League group stage teams

Both Real Madrid and Arsenal qualified for the knockouts of the UEFA Champions League as winners of their respective groups.

The former topped the ratings with an average rating of 6.94, while the latter was placed third behind Manchester City (6.92) with an average of 6.87.

While the Gunners topped Group B with 13 points ahead of PSV Eindhoven in second, Los Blancos secured a perfect record and 18 points en route to winning Group C ahead of second-placed Napoli.

Both teams scored 16 goals apiece in their six games and were joint-third behind Manchester City (18) and Atletico Madrid (17). However, Mikel Arteta's men only conceded four goals compared to Real Madrid's seven.

The Gunners will take on FC Porto in the UCL round of 16 while Los Blancos will face RB Leipzig.