Real Madrid Transfers: Five Serie A midfielders to monitor in summer 2021

Rodrigo De Paul (Udinese)

The Udinese captain, who has been in fantastic form in the last two seasons, is the first name on this list. He has come to fame at the age of 27, and it might be fair to call him a late bloomer. But regardless of his age, he has been brilliant for Udinese, and he has now become one of the mainstays of the Argentina national team.

Looking at his successful 2020/21 season, it is safe to call him one of the best attacking midfielders of the league. He has nine goals and nine assists to his name this season, and he averages 2.3 key passes per game and 4.5 long balls per game as per WhoScored. He is the player with the most successful take-ons, most duels won, most big chances created, and most number of passes into the penalty box in Serie A.

Though he is primarily an attack-minded player, he is not a classic no.10. He is a great presser off the ball, and his defensive support is pretty decent. He also has the ability to play a bit deeper as a central midfielder, as well as a winger. He is a strong player with a great physique, but what makes him the best is his dribbling and playmaking abilities. He can burst through tight spaces with his beautiful touch of the ball and will end that dribble with a killer pass or powerful shot. He’s someone who can guarantee you an end product.

With such a great profile to his name, it’s natural to expect high competition. AC Milan and Inter Milan are in the race for the Argentine, while Atletico Madrid is already in talks with him as per Fabrizio Romano. Udinese value him at 40 million euros and Atletico, who see him as a possible replacement for Saul Niguez, are willing to meet the price.

It might be too late for Real Madrid to enter the race, but he is a player no club would want to miss out on. Maybe Real Madrid wouldn’t consider him as a target due to the abundance of number 10’s in the team, but it wouldn’t be wrong for the club to pursue such a talented midfielder.