Real Madrid evidently see Marcos Llorente as a star for the future but Arsenal hope they can steal him from the Bernabau.
Reports that Arsenal are keen to add Llorente to his ranks would have undoubtedly resulted in a few outbursts of expletives from the more outspoken sections of the #WengerOut brigade. It’s one thing to refuse to stump up for Alexandre Lacazette, but a whole new level of tight-fistedness to attempt to snap up a striker long past his best and struggling to make an impact at Swansea.
For those of you who pressed on after the initial scoffs of derision, however, you’ll have discovered that it’s not in fact Fernando Llorente at the top of Arsenal’s wishlist. Instead, it’s his namesake Marcos, a Real Madrid-owned sensation that has got Arsene Wenger dreaming of a second Cesc Fabregas (below), according to Don Balon.
‘But who is he?’, you cry. Well, we’ll tell you.
1) Zinedine Zidane is a fan. And that’s something, right? Llorente impressed so much during his time with the Juvenil team that the current Real don promoted him immediately to his reserves side in 2013.
2) It’s in his genes. Having a legendary footballer in your own family can often prove a hindrance rather than a help as Jordi Cryuff, Tom Ince and former Stockport defender Joel Cantona will undoubtedly attest. However, the nephew of legendary Spanish winger Francisco Gento appears to be taking it all in his stride. The six-time European Champion Gento (below) played over 400 games for Madrid but, if Arsenal have their way, Llorente will have no chance to following in his uncle’s esteemed footsteps.
3) The 21-year-old is enhancing his reputation on loan at Deportivo Alaves this season, with WhoScored ranking him as the newly promoted sides’ most impressive performer so far thanks to an impressive average of 5 tackles and 1.5 interceptions per game. Furthermore, with an 87% pass success rate, Llorente is by far and away the most reliable distributor an otherwise industrious Alaves side.
4) He may have only featured twice for the Real first-team, but Llorente has already won over the typically hard-to-please Madridistas. Displaying maturity beyond his years, the talented all-rounded helped nullify the likes of Ivan Rakitic and Sergio Busquets (below) as Alaves stunned Barcelona 2-1 at the Camp Nou earlier this season.
5) Despite learning his trade in the Spanish youth set up, and all the technical tutelage that goes with it, Llorente has proven that he can hold his own against English opposition, arriving off the bench to close out an impressive 4-1 pre-season battering of Manchester City in 2015.
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