17:23h CET

Just yesterday Zinedine Zidane made it clear that Real Madrid is open to bringing in fresh blood in the winter transfer market, with a selection of candidates having emerged over recent weeks. The focus has been in two key areas: centre forward and the heart of the defence and a new name is apparently in discussion to shore up the backline.

David Luiz to Madrid's defence

According to reports on Tuesday from Radio Montecarlo, Real Madrid have already opened negotiations with David Luiz, someone who had been desired previously and who is currently enduring a second spell at Chelsea. The expectation is that he would come into Los Blancos squad as back up to first choice centre halves Raphael Varane and Sergio Ramos, but who can offer flexibility in a variety of other positions. Competition with Nacho and Vallejo would ensure more depth available to Zidane.

At 30 years old, he would bring an extra dimension of experience to the team and may have more opportunities to find pitch time than he is at Stamford Bridge. Suggestions are that his relationship with Antonio Conte has soured with the Italian manager stating publicly that if he didn't work harder he would spend his Chelsea days on the bench or in the stands. So far this season, Luiz has played 13 games: 8 in the Premier League, 4 in the Champions League and also featured in the Community Shield.

Full screen Bernabéu slide | could Los Blancos' fans soon be seeing Chelsea's David Luiz celebrate like this? ANDREW BOYERS (Action Images via Reuters)

No Champions League for Luiz

The price being talked about to bring David Luiz to the Bernabéu would be around 30 million euros, but the main handicap is that he could not play in the Champions League competition due to having already been involved with the London club. But added strength for the league and Copa could be crucial for Zidane who is playing an early game of catch-up to Barcelona.