Real Madrid and David Alaba have a pre-contract agreement. It has not been officially signed yet, giving Alaba room to negotiate with other major clubs before the 2020-2021 season comes to a close. But for now, Real remain the favorites to sign Alaba, who has reportedly rejected all other offers to this point. Real may very well be his dream destination.
However, Alaba’s signing is not guaranteed. Therefore, Los Blancos are keeping their options open at the center back position and have a shortlist of alternatives options in case Alaba is swayed by, for example, a PSG or Chelsea salary after all.
According to a report from Jorge C. Picon of AS (article in Spanish), Real Madrid have identified Pau Torres of Villarreal, Napoli’s star man Kalidou Kouliably, loanee Jesus Vallejo, and the prized Jules Kounde as the four main alternatives.
Let’s discuss them all systematically, describing the likelihood of signing each of them. Though before I do this, I would like to say that because of the economic conditions, all of them are unlikely. Real Madrid should stick with Nacho Fernandez and Eder Militao, though Raphael Varane’s uncertain future complicates things.
Jules Kounde is the best player on this reported list of Real Madrid targets
First, Vallejo, whom Real own. The player has been horrible at Granada and has not played well for a few seasons since leaving Eintracht Frankfurt. Once highly-rated, Vallejo no longer looks like Real Madrid quality. I do not even consider him a valid option to return right now.
Next, Kouliably. He was once a dream target and remains an effective center back. With Kouliably, it all depends on cost and both the futures of Alaba and Varane. Otherwise, I do not see Real going for an experienced center back with no future upside.
Torres is intriguing. He has a big release clause of 65 million euros, though, and based on how he has played this season, a team would likely have to activate it in order to sign him away from Villarreal. Manchester United could be candidates here.
Now, we move to the best player on this list, Jules Kounde. Like Torres, Kounde is one of La Liga’s best center backs. Kounde is a generational talent at center back like Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland are in the attack. But because of that, Sevilla know they can wait until someone activates his release clause, which could be at least 80 million euros. Real Madrid don’t have that kind of money to spend on a defender, even though Kounde would be worth every cent.