Real Madrid Prepared to Listen to Offers for Striker Luka Jovic
By Tom Gott
Luka Jović's Real Madrid nightmare could soon be over as Los Blancos are ready to welcome offers for the striker this summer.
Brought in last summer for a whopping €60m, Jović was billed as one of the finest young strikers in Europe. He had just fired 27 goals and seven assists for Eintracht Frankfurt, but has followed that up with two and two in Madrid.
The Serb has struggled to force his way past Karim Benzema in the pecking order, but even when he has seen the pitch, he has failed to impress, and now Marca state that Real could be tempted into parting ways with Jović.
Real's first idea was to let Jović leave on loan in the hope that he would come back stronger and eventually be able to replace the ageing Benzema, but now the idea of offloading Jović permanently has been discussed.
Club officials are reluctant to give up on a major signing so quickly - manager Zinedine Zidane still believes in him - but there have been plenty of moments which have left Real feeling frustrated towards the Serb.
On top of his underwhelming performances on the pitch, Jović has also been guilty of some 'strange behaviour'. During the coronavirus outbreak, he has been caught consistently breaching quarantine regulations, and Real don't believe that is behaviour befitting one of their players.
In terms of possible destinations, Real may struggle to offload Jović permanently, and as a result of his poor form this season, they won't get anywhere near the €60m they paid for him, but there could be plenty of interest in a loan deal.
Before the coronavirus outbreak, Jović was linked with a number of top sides, with Chelsea, Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur all believed to be interested. AC Milan have also been touted as likely suitors if Zlatan Ibrahimović is offloaded this summer.
He still has plenty of fans as a result of his outstanding performances last season, which left most of Europe's elite desperate to sign him for big money, but clubs will be wary of committing too much to him at this point.
Jović's chances of impressing towards the end of the season were recently dealt a huge blow as he was forced to self-isolate after meeting with a friend (which Real authorised) who has since tested positive for coronavirus.