Reports in Spain have explained why Real Madrid ended up deciding against a transfer swoop for Chelsea forward Eden Hazard this summer.
In a strange development, it seems Los Blancos did not believe it was worth meeting Chelsea’s £90million demands for Hazard because he did not really fit into a position they needed to strengthen, according to Don Balon.
The report goes on to explain that Madrid were more keen to sign an out-and-out goalscorer like Harry Kane or Robert Lewandowski, though both were unavailable for differing reasons.
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Quite why Real came to this decision when their other targets were out of reach is pretty bizarre, as Hazard looks as good as any realistic option to fill the void left by Cristiano Ronaldo.
Granted, the Belgium international has never been as much of a prolific scorer as Ronaldo, but that could be put down largely to the role he’s played at Chelsea for most of his Premier League career – a creative player supplying a traditional centre-forward like Diego Costa or Alvaro Morata.
Hazard has, however, played in a false 9 role on occasion and would likely flourish in such a system at the Bernabeu, especially as La Liga is a generally less competitive league and Real a team who would provide him with better service than a Blues outfit that goes through spells of being dominant, followed by spells of serious dysfunction.
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Loading ...At the £90m asking price quoted by Don Balon, Real would have had a real steal if they’d brought the 27-year-old in, but it now surely looks too late for this summer as the closing of the English transfer window means CFC would have to wait until January to sign a replacement.
Madrid, meanwhile, leave themselves with precious little time to sign the big name they surely need in attack after Ronaldo’s departure to Juventus.