Real Madrid have identified Jude Bellingham as a key transfer target and are ready to battle Liverpool for his signature, although it will be next summer rather than this year.
The 19-year-old has become one of the most exciting prospects in world football, already racking up 90 appearances for Borussia Dortmund since his 2020 move from Birmingham City.
The midfielder has also picked up 15 England caps and is pushing to be in Gareth Southgate’s starting line-up at the World Cup in Qatar this year.
If he has an impressive time on the international stage then he will attract even more suitors, but it appears that there will be a sizeable scrap over his signature next summer anyway.
Borussia Dortmund will not sell Bellingham this year, having already sold Erling Haaland to Manchester City for a fee which could rise to £85.5m.
The German club are firm in their stance, the midfielder is not for sale now, so potential buyers have backed off, but they will return for him in 2023.
Liverpool are keen on the England international, and according to Spanish publication Marca, so are Real Madrid.
The ageing stars that Real have in midfield – Luka Modric, Toni Kroos and Casemiro – do not have long left at the top and the Spanish champions see Bellingham as the final piece of their new midfield jigsaw alongside Eduardo Camavinga, Aurelian Tchouameni and Federico Valverde.
Liverpool are developing a batch of young midfielders themselves, with Harvey Elliott, Curtis Jones and Tyler Morton making progress and Jurgen Klopp wants to add Bellingham to that group.
A tussle between Real Madrid and Liverpool, and potentially other interested parties, next summer will make Bellingham extremely expensive, likely to cost as more than City paid Dortmund for Haaland this year.