Real Madrid are reportedly considering making an offer to Tottenham for Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, with Casemiro on the way to Manchester United.
Real boss Carlo Ancelotti confirmed on Friday that Casemiro was on his way to United after the club accepted his desire to leave for a “new challenge”. The 30-year-old midfielder is expected to cost an initial fee of €60million (£50.9m), which could rise to €70m (£59m) with add-ons. He will sign a four-year contract which will have the option of a further 12 months.
That is good news for Erik ten Hag, who has been frustrated in United’s long-running pursuit of Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong. But it could be bad news for Tottenham, with Hojbjerg being eyed up as a potential replacement.
According to the Telegraph, Ancelotti is personally advocating for Hojbjerg, who he tried to sign for Everton when he was in charge at Goodison Park. The Danish international joined Spurs on a five-year contract for £15m in 2020 – but only after Everton came close to winning his signature.
He still has three years left on his contract and has started both of Tottenham’s Premier League games this season alongside Rodrigo Bentancur in midfield, scoring in the 2-2 draw with Chelsea. However, Real will hope that the arrival of Yves Bissouma at Spurs may encourage Hojbjerg to leave for Spain.
The 27-year-old will play for Denmark at the World Cup in Qatar from November onwards and wants regular game time in the lead up to the competition. If he were to join Real he would face competition from £68m summer signing Aurelien Tchouameni, as well as Toni Kroos, Luka Modric, Fede Valverde and Eduardo Camavinga.
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Casemiro will leave behind quite the legacy at Real, where he has made 336 appearances since joining in 2013 from Sao Paulo. He helped to win three La Liga titles, five Champions League titles and a Copa del Rey.
"Casemiro wants to try a new challenge, and I and the club understand that. After all, he's done for this club, we need to respect his decision. Casemiro is leaving but we have a lot of resources to replace him,” Ancelotti said.
"There is no turning back, Casemiro has decided to try a new challenge. We want to wish him the very best. Just yesterday I realised that Casemiro is leaving, but our plans don't change - we'll compete for everything with or without Casemiro. I think Casemiro has been a key player for us, he was important to [Toni] Kroos and [Luka] Modric - the combination was key to success.
"Casemiro's teammates understand his decision, they respect it - it was his will to try a new challenge and we have to accept it. I can't reply to why Casemiro traded European Champions for a struggling side, it's his personal decision."
