Real Madrid To Offer James Rodriguez And Varane For De Gea

Real Madrid are reportedly pondering over a cash-plus-player deal involving James Rodriguez in a bid to secure the ‘Operation David de Gea’.

Manchester United signed De Gea from Real’s rival Atletico Madrid in 2011 for £18 million, and since then he has grown into one of Europe’s top goalkeepers.

The Red Devils are reluctant to sell their No. 1 goalkeeper but are awaiting a massive bid from Real Madrid this summer.

The Spaniard still has two years left on his current deal, which was signed less than a month after a proposed move to the Spanish capital collapsed in 2015. United now reportedly value the 26-year-old goalkeeper at £66 million.

Now according to Spanish radio station OK Diario, Real are confident to seal the deal but well aware that United will not let go their top performer. The La Liga giants believe De Gea’s starting price is around £60m.

De Gea is rumoured to be open to a move ahead of next season, and the Bernabeu hierarchy is hoping to tempt Jose Mourinho to sell his main man by offering him Rodriguez and Raphael Varane as part of the deal along with £20m transfer fee.

United were heavily linked with a January move for James but that time Zinedine Zidane was not ready to sell.

That was actually in part because Real were undergoing a transfer embargo then, meaning they would have been unable to land a replacement. This summer, however, no such ban exists and Rodriguez, who has only started seven La Liga fixtures this season, could be sacrificed to bring in long-term target De Gea.

Meanwhile, Varane has a good relationship with Mourinho from his time at the Bernabeu, while his boyhood hero was United’s Rio Ferdinand.