Real Madrid face competition to sign Reece James from Chelsea as new club enter transfer battle: Reports
Real Madrid will face competition from Manchester City in their quest to sign Reece James from Chelsea as both clubs look to secure their future.
This is as per reports from Spanish outlet El Nacional, who have mentioned that Pep Guardiola's team are looking for a successor to 33-year-old Kyle Walker.
The Cityzens' situation is similar to that of Los Blancos, who are in the market for a long-term replacement for Daniel Carvajal, who is 32 years old.
Both City and Real rate Reece James highly. At just 23, he is Chelsea's captain and has already won the Champions League with his boyhood club. He plays with the poise of a veteran and offers defensive solidity as well as formidable support in attack.
James' two-way style of play suits Real Madrid really well as they continue their search for a replacement for the injury-prone Carvajal. Lucas Vazquez's contract expires at the end of the season and club president Florentino Perez has no intentions of offering him an extension. This opens the door for Los Blancos to make a move for the Englishman.
However, they will face stiff competition from the defending European champions Manchester City, who are planning for the future as well.
Joao Cancelo has departed for Bayern Munich, albeit on loan. However, there seems to be no way back for him into Guardiola's plans. Rico Lewis is still young an inexperienced, and has mostly been deployed in midfield. Despite age catching up with Walker, he still does a great job of catching up with his markers but his abilities are bound to regress.
Real Madrid or Manchester City will need to cough up an enormous amount to prise Chelsea's captain away from west London. It remains to be seen what the two giants can pull off in this saga.
Chelsea could miss out on Alphonso Davies as Real Madrid lead the race to sign him
Along with plans of strengthening the right side of their defense, Florentino Perez is also keen on adding firepower on the left side. For this, Real Madrid view Bayern Munich's Alphonso Davies as the ideal candidate.
Other top clubs such as Chelsea, Manchester City, Paris Saint-Germain and Liverpool are all said to be interested in signing the Canadian international.
However, as per Graeme Bailey of 90min Football, Davies has his heart set on a move to the Santiago Bernabeu. The report added that Bayern are also aware of the player's preference.
This could be a massive blow for other interested clubs because usually when Real Madrid are interested in a big player, the race is finished before it starts.
It remains to be seen which club Alphonso Davies chooses as the next step in his career.