Spanish giants to make move for Casillas replacement.
European champions Real Madrid are set to offer Stoke City goalkeeper Asmir Begovic the chance to recover from his World Cup heartbreak by making a £15m offer to bring him to the Santiago Bernabeu this summer, according to the Daily Star.
The race for the 27-year-old is expected to accelerate now he has returned from international duty in Brazil following Bosnia’s early exit at the group stage.
Arsenal had been the club most heavily linked with making a move for him in the upcoming transfer window but Real are set to jump to the head of the line as Carlo Ancelotti is reported to be a big fan of the 6’6 shot stopper, revealing that he tried to sign him twice while in Charge at Chelsea.
Ancelotti will now make a third and hopefully final offer for the Bosnian in a bid to ease the goalkeeping crisis at the club.
Current number one Diego Lopez is likely to head to Serie A this summer as Napoli and AC Milan are both said to be keen, while Iker Casillas showed his rust during Spain’s World Cup campaign and will seek a move of his own after being relegated to the bench for the majority of the season.
With Casillas’ decline becoming so apparent, Ancelotti now believes it is the ideal time to bring Begovic to the club and install him as their first choice.
Begovic, signed from Portsmouth four years ago for just over £3m, has joined the elite bracket of top Premier League keepers, and while the Potters won’t be inviting offers they have made it known that should a bid of around £15m comes in they won’t stand in his way.
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