Manchester United and Manchester City on alert as Mateo Kovacic tells Real Madrid he wants to leave
Croatian midfielder gives Premier League sides huge boost in pursuit after talks with new boss Julen Lopetegui fail to convince him to stay
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MATEO KOVACIC has given Manchester United and Manchester City a boost by declaring his intention to leave Real Madrid this summer.
The Croatian midfielder, 24, is fed up with a lack of playing time at the Bernabeu, which he believes harmed his national team chances, being left out of both the World Cup final and semi-final lineups.
Stuck behind the likes of Casemiro, Toni Kroos and countryman Luka Modric, Kovacic played just 21 La Liga games last season.
report that discussions with new boss Julen Lopetegui ahead of the 2018/19 campaign failed to convince the player he was a valued member of the squad.
Kovacic has made 109 appearances across all competitions in his three seasons in the Spanish capital, ever since a £25million switch from Inter Milan.
He won the Champions League in every season at Real but has decided his time is up, although the club are said to be holding out for every penny of his £44m release clause.
United have been in the market for a central midfielder all summer, first signing £52m man Fred from Shakhtar Donetsk and being repeatedly linked with Lazio's Sergej Milinkovic-Savic.
It is believed however that the Italian club's £88m asking price for Milinkovic-Savic is far beyond what boss Jose Mourinho is willing to pay, and with Real Madrid and Juventus also in the race, United are not willing to enter a bidding war for the Serbian.
City meanwhile are turning their focus to alternative targets after missing out on Jorginho to Premier League rivals Chelsea, despite having reportedly agreed a £46m fee for the Napoli man.
The club have opened talks with Ilkay Gundogan over a new deal amid interest from Barcelona, but should the 27-year-old leave, they would likely up their pursuit of Kovacic.
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In June Kovacic told Marca: "I want to play more and the best thing is to leave Madrid.
"I love football and being on the pitch, I want the opportunity to be a starter for another team.
"I think that in Real Madrid all the players are important. The problem is that for a young player it is difficult to have continuity and without that continuity I will never be able to show my potential.
"When I do not play, I am not happy. These three years in Madrid, with some incredible teammates, winning trophies... but I have not been completely happy because my contribution to all that has not been the maximum and it's something I want to change.
"I've been in Madrid for three years and I have not played too much and that's something that has affected my status in the national team.
"It's something that does not make me happy, that's why it's best to change teams."
His national team fears were confirmed as he made just one start in Croatia's run to a first ever World Cup final, unable to break into a midfield containing Modric, Ivan Rakitic and Marcelo Brozovic.
And it appears that despite a change of coach, with Lopetegui replacing former boss Zinedine Zidane, Kovacic is still adamant that his future lies elsewhere.
