Real Madrid missing out on Antonio Rudiger could lead to a better CB signing

Real Madrid have had a bunch of options to choose from at centre-back. Obviously, it’s a position that needs some sort of reinforcement considering the sheer lack of depth there is. If you look past David Alaba and Eder Militao, the two starting centre-backs — both of whom have been amazing so far this season — there is not much going on.

Nacho Fernandez is a decent back-up, but he has seen a drop off in quality from last season, and I think he’s good enough for a fourth choice centre-back in this team, but not more than that. Prior to this season, he had been fourth choice for as long as I can remember. But, anyway, point is, Real Madrid need a centre-back more than people think they do.

According to many, many sources, Real Madrid were looking at Antonio Rudiger as an option to go for next season. It was going to be a suitable purchase; they’d get a good, experienced centre-back for no transfer fee. But, as it turns out, Real Madrid have dropped negotiations with the German centre-back and his agent, per source.

Real Madrid should go for Jules Kounde in the summer after the Rudiger snub

Now it makes me wonder, is this a blessing in disguise? Of course, it would’ve been a great thing to have these three players compete for the starting spots, but at the same time, missing out on Rudiger could lead Real to sign a centre-back that makes more sense in every way imaginable — Jules Kounde.

Jules Kounde is currently a Sevilla player. He’s one of the most sought-after centre-backs in world football, and his game is way ahead of his age. Yes, he has a tendency to make an error or two, but he’s mostly secure, he is young, has loads of potential and would perfectly fit in with the team.

I think that the potential to improve automatically makes Kounde a better choice than Rudiger. Then, of course, you think about the transfer fees. Kounde would cost Real Madrid a significant amount of money, but at the same time, it’s a great player who’s not even close to his prime. I think Real Madrid would look at it more as an investment for both the present and the future. Plus, I don’t think that Kounde would ask for as much money as Rudiger, which is also a good thing. There is potential to get a better contract in the future, but at this stage, I think he would ask for a bit less than what Rudiger wanted, which again, is good.

Then you think of the partnership that Alaba and Militao have formed, and wonder: Who’s more likely to take the third choice centre-back to start the season and fight his way up? An experienced, Antonio Rudiger in his prime, or a young Jules Kounde who has a lot to learn from David Alaba and Militao, and also has a lot of potential which would make him a guaranteed starter in the long run, or even in the near future? I think you know which player I’m leaning towards.

I think that both Rudiger and Kounde bring a lot to the table in their own respective ways, but at the end of the day, Kounde’s positives outweigh his negatives and outscore Rudiger’s positives, in my opinion. Real Madrid missing out on a player like Rudiger is surely a bummer, but it is something that could turn into a blessing in disguise, should Real Madrid act on it in the summer.