Real Madrid: 3 things that need to happen in 2020-2021

Chances for Luka Jovic

Real Madrid striker Luka Jovic has been mired in transfer rumors, to the point where it seems like many people believe he could be headed to AS Monaco after the Ligue 1 club hired Niko Kovac to fix their flailing club. Although Kovac is a good coach with an established rapport with Jovic, going from Madrid to Monaco would be a massive downgrade for the 22-year-old striker.

Jovic can still succeed here, and there’s every reason to believe that Zinedine Zidane still believes in the player he pushed for Real to sign in the summer of 2019 for 60 million euros.

But Jovic needs opportunities. He had a solid goal-scoring record per 90 minutes for Real Madrid in La Liga, even though most of his playing time came in five-minute cameos at the end of matches when he had no real chance of having an influence. Even so, Jovic still succeeded, memorably assisting Casemiro’s winning goal against Sevilla in 2020.

Jovic has all the tools to be a world-class No. 9, and if Real Madrid aren’t careful, he could join an exclusive list of young players whom they missed out on from under their noses. Now is not the time to give up on Jovic. Yes, he must mature, and, no, not everything he does is great, but Real must stand by the player. They need to give him opportunities to shine before looking at, say, Erling Haaland in 2022.