It is no secret that Real Madrid would enter the transfer window with the mindset of reinforcing their squad with some of the best talents currently available after their ongoing inconsistent campaign.

By the looks of it, Los Blancos are yet to decide whether Alvaro Arbeloa will continue as their manager or not from next season onwards, but that would surely not stop the club management from looking at options in the form of players for the summer.

One area where the Whites would look to strengthen is the number nine position as the squad currently lacks a proper number nine other than Gonzalo Garcia, who could well be loaned out during the upcoming transfer window for further development outside the club.

After signing Kylian Mbappe, Los Blancos were heavily linked with another global star, as rumors of a probable move for Erling Haaland have since been on the cards for the Spanish club.

It seems that, now, Haaland's astronomical transfer fee of around €200 million could be the reason Los Merengues are exploring other options that could be cheaper and better in the long term.

Now, according to a recent report from ESPN (h/t GOAL), the Whites are looking to pull out of their Haaland dreams and are monitoring Liverpool striker Hugo Ekitike for a probable move during the summer.

Since completing the move to Anfield from Eintracht Frankfurt last summer, Ekitike has performed consistently for the Reds, as he has already netted 17 times for the Merseyside club in all competitions this season.

On the other hand, Haaland has already scored 22 goals this season in the Premier League itself, which of course justifies the asking price for the Norwegian, given the recent trends of the past few transfer windows.

Both Ekitike and Haaland are bound by long term contracts at their respective clubs wiht the Manchester City number nine's contract set to expire in 2034 and the Frenchman till 2031 which would be a definite advantage for both clubs when it comes to negotiations.

Bringing in either of these two forwards to the Bernabeu this summer could be a mamoth task even for the standards of Real Madrid but if the Reds fail to qualify for the next season's Champions League, the 23-year might just look at other options before the start of the next campaign.

Both of these phenomenal players would face each other in the FA  Cup quarterfinals this weekend and then Ekitike and Liverpool would face a daunting PSG challenge in the UCL next week as the Frenchman looks forward to a much anticipated home-coming.

There is absolutely no doubt that both these games would be pivotal for Liverpool and Ekitike alike as Los Blancos prepare for a busy summer transfer window.

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