Real Madrid dealt blow in David Alaba pursuit by Chelsea?

Real Madrid have been linked to Bayern Munich star David Alaba, set to become a free agent after this season, but are they the favorites?

Ever since Bayern Munich made it clear that they would let club legend David Alaba leave as a free agent upon his contract expiry, Real Madrid and FC Barcelona were recognized as the favorites to sign him. Since Barça don’t have any money right now and Alaba’s wages will be high, Real were seen as the more likely landing spot among the two rivals.

But Alaba’s high salary also makes him onerous to Los Blancos. Real Madrid have been hit hard by the pandemic, even if they are in better financial health than the poorly-run Blaugrana. They must be prudent with their signings, because they already have more important targets to bolster their attack in mind, namely dream signing Kylian Mbappe.

According to a report from BILD journalist Christian Falk, Alaba’s agent Pini Zahavi will conduct contract negotiations in January with Chelsea. PSG are also interested in the Bayern defender.

There’s no mention of Real Madrid. They could join with formal negotiations with Zahavi for Alaba, and they have a good relationship with the noted superagent. But for now, Chelsea and PSG are the two teams reported by Falk.

Chelsea and PSG both have a ton of money and are ambitious. PSG didn’t make any major signings this summer, though they did bolster their squad with the likes of Alessandro Florenzi at right back and Danilo Pereira in midfield. Chelsea, meanwhile, splurged more than any other club. They added legitimate attacking superstars in Hakim Ziyech, Kai Havertz, and Timo Werner. And they even signed a veteran defender for free in Thiago Silva.

So Alaba would be another big-time free signing for the Blues. He is a world-class player at multiple positions. Alaba has been one of the world’s best left backs for years, he as one of the best center backs in his league last season, and he is an excellent defensive midfielder.

Real Madrid would love to have high-quality depth at all those positions by signing Alaba, but PSG and Chelsea are both in a better financial situation to sign Alaba. Watch how their interest in the 28-year-old develops this winter.