Real Madrid Have Three Midfielders on Their Radar: Reports

In the past couple of days, it has become more than clear that Real Madrid will in fact not be signing Manchester City midfielder and 2024 Ballon D'or winner, Rodri. 

This has lead to a lot of frustration from within the fanbase, who thought that the Spain international was the perfect player to come into the midfield. A controller in the side for the first time since Toni Kroos retired and Luka Modric left the club. 

However, it has been claimed that the club are generally pretty happy regardless, and that new signing Bernardo Silva will be the starter in the double pivot alongside captain Federico Valverde. 

Despite that, there is an interesting report from Spanish journalist Jose Felix Diaz via MadridXtra, on Saturday morning (the 8th of August). Indeed so, as he says, whilst Silva is now the main plan, the club are still watching the market for a midfielder. 

Furthermore, he name drops Adam Wharton (Crystal Palace and England), Kees Smit (AZ Alkmaar and the Netherlands), and Ayyoub Bouaddi (LOSC Lille and Morocco), as three midfielders on the club's radar. 

Something worth noting is that there are a lot of reports that Bouaddi is going to join Manchester City this summer, so that could be off the table soon. As for the other two, well they have both been linked with Real Madrid for a while now, dating back to last season. 

Interesting links. Wharton is a very, very good player, a very cultured midfielder who is always looking to fizz the ball between the lines as well as create chances. In the Premier League last season, he created 14 big chances - a number that could only be bettered by five players in the whole league, despite playing around 28.5 full 90's. 

That said, he is high risk high reward at this stage of his career. His passing can sometimes be wayward. He is willing to risk giving the ball away in order to create an opportunity. So, sometimes there could be a struggle in terms of ball retention. 

As for Smit, it is harder to know. With all due respect, the Eredivise is not at at the same level as the Premier League or La Liga. But he is someone with a lot of plaudits, so certainly one to keep an eye on. Overall, Wharton feels like the best fit if Bouaddi is indeed City bound.