Rafa Benitez is very keen on bringing Lucas Vazquez to Tyneside according to reports in the Mirror. Benitez was a key component in bring Vazquez back from Espanyol in 2015 and the winger has turned into an important player at Real Madrid contributing directly in their success in recent years. He played the highest number of games for Zidane last season and started the Champions League final in 2016, scoring the first penalty in that shoot-out win.

Now Benitez wants him at Newcastle. The Spanish coach understands how difficult it will be for Vazquez to play regularly at Real Madrid next season and is trying to coax him to the Premier League. Asensio, Isco and the BBC all remain ahead of Vazquez, who at 26 will be looking to have regular minutes next season.

Real Madrid do not want to sell the player and Zidane is happy with his contribution and work in the preseason but as the French manager continues to say, "until the 31st of August, anything can happen." At present, Real Madrid are overbooked in the middle of the field and are also courting Kylian Mbappé meaning Vazquez would likely be pushed further down the pecking order.