- Real Madrid are leaning towards signing Thibaut Courtois over David de Gea
- The Spanish giants could pay a world-record fee for a goalkeeper to do a deal
- Real believe it may be easier to buy from Chelsea rather than Manchester United
- READ MORE: Chelsea plot Barcelona raid for €60m star, prepared to triple wages
Real Madrid are reportedly leaning towards sealing the transfer of Chelsea goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois over Manchester United’s David de Gea ahead of the summer.
According to the Independent, Florentino Perez anticipates paying around £100million for a new shot-stopper, which would smash the world transfer record fee for a ‘keeper.
The report adds that Real are likely to offer players in exchange to help get a deal over the line, following various similar reports emerging from Spain recently.
Diario Gol have recently also linked Madrid with an interest in Chelsea forward Eden Hazard, with Marco Asensio touted as an option to move to Stamford Bridge as part of the deal.
The Independent do not name any specific Los Blancos stars who could be included as part of an exchange, but the Spanish attacker could be a fine signing for Chelsea if they do get the chance to take their pick of players from the Bernabeu.
Still, losing Courtois would be a major blow and they’d likely struggle to find a top class replacement even if they were to bring in a huge sum of money from his sale.
The Belgium international has been up there with De Gea as the leading ‘keeper in the Premier League over the last few years, and it’s easy to see why Real believe it might be easier to move for him over the United ace.
As noted by the Independent, Courtois recently mentioned his ties to Madrid, where his family are based, and he’s yet to sign an extension to his contract that is currently due to expire at the end of next season.