Who will Real Madrid sign to replace Cristiano Ronaldo after joining Juventus?
Cristiano Ronaldo’s move to Juventus will spark some major transfer movement at Real Madrid but will it be Kylian Mbappe, Neymar or Eden Hazard trying to fill his shoes in Spain?
There’s a Cristiano Ronaldo-sized hole at the Santiago Bernabeu and the Spanish giants are sure to want a huge name, or maybe two, to fill the gap.
Ronaldo’s transfer could also signal some transfer activity back at Juventus, as the Portuguese is now the main man it may force a couple of their other attacking options out of Turin.
Real Madrid targets (Sky Bet odds to join)
Eden Hazard 2/5
Impressed at the World Cup, coming third in the Golden Ball voting, and he’s already been quoted as saying he may fancy a change of scenery in the summer. The 27-year-old’s dribbling skills would be a good fit in La Liga and with Chelsea not involved in the Champions League this season that’s yet another reason to move to Spain.
The major question in this deal is how hard Chelsea fight to keep hold of him, with quotes of around £200m already being thrown about in the media. In these circumstances though the player usually gets their own way.
Kylian Mbappe 9/4
The 19-year-old has elevated himself to another level after winning the World Cup and scoring in the final, and a player of his stature fights right in with the ‘Galacticos’ mantra at Real Madrid.
His £162m move from Monaco to PSG became permanent this summer after an initial loan, but the French side may be able to make an instant profit if heavy-hitter Real come in with a big-money offer. He’d certainly fill the superstar status Ronaldo is leaving.
Neymar 7/4
The Brazilian is also the superstar Real Madrid crave as the current most expensive footballer in the world having moved from Barcelona to Paris St Germain for a record £199.8m. His ability on the pitch and status off it fits in perfectly with that of Ronaldo and it’d almost be like-for-like in popularity terms.
There’s also the fact that Mbappe may steal some of his limelight at PSG so it may be a case of one or the other in the French capital with the other being allowed to leave for what will be a new world record fee.
Players heading out of Juventus
Ronaldo joining the Italian giants leaves them with a wealth of attacking options, but not all of them will be happy playing second fiddle and at least one of them could be heading out of Turin.
Gonzalo Higuain
The Argentinian marksman has been touted for a move for some time and Chelsea are at the head of the queue with new boss Maurizio Sarri having seen him at close quarters at Napoli. Ronaldo has developed into the central striker at Real Madrid and on paper he and Higuain is not a combination that looks likely to work.
4/11 Chelsea 9/4 to stay at Juventus
Paulo Dybala
Woefully underused by Argentina in the World Cup, Dybala is a smart, skilful forward who can create as well as scores goals and it’s unlikely that he’ll be the one shipped out by Juventus. He’d probably command the biggest fee but he could well forge a fearsome partnership with Ronaldo so the club will be keen to try and see if that can work going forward.
1/3 To stay at Juventus 6/1 Liverpool
Mario Mandzukic
The Croatian marksman will be falling into a bit-part role in Turin with the addition of Ronaldo, it all depends if he is happy with that role or would want to play more regular football. Manchester United lead the betting but it’s hard to see him getting more of a game at Old Trafford. He could be one to stay put and try and make the most of his chances.
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