Real Madrid intends to rule the summer 2018 transfer market.
The Spanish soccer giant plans to launch a blockbuster spending spree during the summer transfer window in an effort to boost its squad and improve results next season, FOX Sports’ Grant Wahl reported Tuesday, citing a high-ranking source at the club.
Real Madrid reportedly is planning to spend around $740 million (£530 million/€596 million) on a recruitment drive, which it hopes will net Harry Kane from Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur and other eye-popping transfer targets.
Real Madrid will face Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday in the first leg of their Champions League Round of 16 series, and the outcome of the matchup might determine other aspects of Los Blancos’ summer planning.
Real Madrid also reportedly hopes Zinedine Zidane will step down as head coach at the end of the season. Zidane led the team to successive UEFA Champions League titles in 2016 and 2017, but fortunes have dipped sharply this season, with the European competition representing Real Madrid’s last hope for end-of-season success.
Chelsea’s under-fire manager Antonio Conte and Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino are Real Madrid’s top choices to replace Zidane, according to Wahl.
