Athletic Bilbao goalkeeper Unai Simon could be a potential transfer target for Real Madrid as Los Blancos have identified him as a replacement for Thibaut Courtois.
The Belgian international joined Real Madrid last August after winning the Golden Glove in the World Cup where his nation finished third. However, Courtois’ form suffered a dip after moving to the Santiago Bernabeu as he has managed to make only 13 clean sheets for Los Blancos so far.
The 27-year-old just hasn’t been able to be the nightmare for attackers he once used to be. Real Madrid slipped to second in the La Liga table after losing to newly-promoted Real Mallorca.
According to El Desmarque, Los Blancos have identified Simon as a replacement for Courtois. The 22-year-old joined Athletic Bilbao’s senior team last summer and has so far made 19 appearances for the club, keeping seven clean sheets. This season, Simon has been a regular for Gaizka Garitano’s side, featuring in eight of their nine matches.
The 22-year-old has kept four clean clean sheets in La Liga so far with only Granada’s Rui Silva and Atletico Madrid’s Jan Oblak having more to their names. Simon’s current contract at Bilbao expires in 2023 and the report from El Desmarque states that he has a release clause of €50 million.
The 22-year-old has done fairly well so far and Real Madrid might make a move for him if Courtois doesn’t show an improvement.