Real Madrid will be forced to loan out Celtic target Takefusa Kubo ahead of the 2020/21 campaign, with AS reporting that Non-EU rules are blocking the Asian sensation from securing a first-team role at the Santiago Bernabeu.
In recent years, the newly-crowned La Liga champions have taken to scouring South America for some of the brightest young talent in world football.
With Florentino Perez determined to unearth Neymar 2.0, over £100 million has been invested in Vinicius Jr, Rodrygo Goes and Reinier Jesus – three fleet-footed super-kids who moved to the Spanish capital before the age of 18.
The downside, however, is that there is only space in Madrid’s squad for a limited number of players born outside of the EU.
Vinicius, Rodrygo, Eder Militao and Uruguayan midfielder Fede Valverde are now key members of Zinedine Zidane’s squad, meaning Los Blancos will have no choice but to find a club willing to take Japanese wonderkid Kubo on loan ahead of next season.
Yet they are not exactly short of offers.
AS claimed in June that Celtic, AC Milan, Ajax and more are queuing up to sign a diminutive, left-footed schemer who has shaded of a young Messi in his twinkling toes.
Kubo was the stand-out player in a Real Mallorca team who eventually succumbed to relegation in 2019/20, his exhilarating performances and defence-splitting passes suggesting that he could take Scottish football by storm if Celtic win the race for his signature.
“We’re talking about a player with immense talent and a great future ahead of him. He is one of the most gifted players in the world right now,” Barcelona legend Andres Iniesta told AS last year of Kubo, who broke records aplenty in the feted La Masia academy before making a shock switch to the Catalan Kings’ bitter La Liga rivals.
Kubo has a £230 million release-clause in his contract. Real Madrid really do rate him that highly.
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