(Football news) Real Madrid are having an incredible season under Carlo Ancelotti. They have already secured the La Liga title and are also in the UEFA Champions League final. Earlier this year they also won the Spanish Super Cup in Saudi Arabia. Next season, the Los Blancos will be hoping to strengthen their squad even further by filling a few gaps. Madrid are heavily linked with a free move for Kylian Mbappe but reports suggest that it isn't final yet. Antonio Rudiger's arrival on the other hand is imminent with only the official announcement pending.
The one place where Real Madrid need to strengthen is the back-up striker spot. At this moment in time Real Madrid have Mariano Diaz and Luka Jovic, both of whom definitely do not have Carlo Ancelotti's trust. Mariano was supposed to start the Madrid derby but was replaced at the last minute by Jovic. The Serbian had absolutely no impact on the game and didn't look interested at times. Mariano on the other hand lacks quality at the top level and often makes bad decisions. Real Madrid have suffered dearly whenever Karim Benzema doesn't play. Ancelotti has often chosen to play with Rodrygo or Asensio as a striker instead of using Mariano or Jovic.
Both the strikers are definitely going to be sold in the summer which means that there is a spot open. Real Madrid have reportedly identified academy graduates Borja Mayoral and Raul de Tomas. Both the players have come through the ranks of Real Madrid's La Fabrica academy and have scored a lot of goals for the Castilla side. De Tomas didn't get his opportunity at Real Madrid and played only 1 game for the 1st team. Mayoral on the other hand did get chances and even scored 3 goals in his 22 appearances one of which was in the Champions League.
Mayoral is currently playing for Getafe and has scored 6 goals in 15 La Liga appearances 8 of which have been starts. De Tomas on the other hand is a joint 3rd top scorer in the La Liga with 15 goals in 32 matches for Espanyol. Based on numbers, De Tomas is clear but there are other things favoring Mayoral. The biggest issue is that De Tomas will cost Real Madrid around €30-40 million as he is no longer on loan from Madrid nor does Madrid have a buyback clause. Mayoral on the other hand is only on loan and would cost nothing.
Borja Mayoral has the experience of training and playing with the Real Madrid first team. Mayoral's playing style is closer to Benzema's with his linkup play as opposed to De Tomas who is more of a poacher. It will be interesting to see how and when Madrid act on the situation. In the remaining 3 La Liga games Mariano and Jovic may get a few chances but unless they do something extraordinary there will be chances next season.
Also read: Real Madrid ask Aurélien Tchouaméni to wait for another season
