Spanish giants Real Madrid have been left reeling after the unexpected impending move of veteran Brazilian midfielder Casemiro is on the verge of joining Premier League giants Manchester United this summer.
The Red Devils have desperately been trying to find transfer alternatives after their number one summer target, Barcelona star Frenkie de Jong, was no longer viewed as a viable option for the club under new boss Erik ten Hag, with United agreeing to a deal eventually worth €70m for the 30-year-old five-time Champions League winner who is set for a new challenge in the next phase of his career after agreeing to personal terms.
With the impending departure of the holding midfielder, Madrid will now look to possibly fill that void in the senior setup under Carlo Ancelotti and may look to turn to Tottenham ace Pierre-Emile Højbjerg according to The Telegraph’s Jason Burt.
Hojbjerg would have some big shoes to fill…#TelegraphFootball
— Telegraph Football (@TeleFootball) August 19, 2022
The 27-year-old Danish international midfield maestro has become a key figure at Tottenham under Antonio Conte and José Mourinho before him after his arrival from Southampton in the summer of 2020 and has already logged over 100 appearances for Spurs in less than three seasons in north London.
Despite Madrid’s spending on young French midfield pair Eduardo Camavinga and Aurélien Tchouaméni in the last two summers, the La Liga holders must countenance the fact that Croatian star Luka Modrić is thirty-seven as of next month, while Dani Ceballos has long been viewed as surplus to requirements at the Santiago Bernabeu.
That leaves the club with the aforementioned midfield trio as well as Toni Kroos and Federico Valverde, only one of which is a recognized holding midfielder.
The Champions League participants do have solid midfield options in their own right after Malian international Yves Bissouma joined the club this summer, adding his name to Rodrigo Bentancur and Oliver Skipp as the three other central options under Conte alongside Højbjerg.
However, Conte no doubt would want to secure a replacement for the Dane if the club does accept an offer from the Spanish capital, but with no standing links this summer to any midfielders in the wake of Bissouma’s arrival, movement would have to be swift should anything be considered before the window closes in two weeks time.
