REAL MADRID

22:21h CEST

Reports from Italy suggest that Juventus continue to enquire about Mateo Kovacic and are keen to take the player off Real Madrid's hands given how bloated los Blancos' midfield has become. La Gazzetta dello Sport claim that Real Madrid have put a price on the Croatian whether that be in an attempt to scare off the Serie A giants or to test their mettle.

The figure mentioned is €25 million for a loan deal and that figure would be likely to increase if Juventus wanted to keep the 23-year-old on a permanent basis.

At the moment, Zidane has not made it clear whether Kovacic is in his plans or not but after an excellent preseason, he might be Real Madrid's fifth midfielder behind Toni Kroos, Casemiro, Modric and Isco. Given Zidane's rotation policy, Kovacic will likely get chances. Dani Ceballos will be hoping to influence the pecking order and this is, perhaps, why Max Allegri remains enthusiastic about a potential deal.