Manchester City face losing one of their key players to Real Madrid, after it emerged that Vinicius Jr is no closer to extending his current Los Blancos contract.
Multiple Spanish reports have suggested that Vinicius Jr, whose Real Madrid contract expires in 2027, is on the verge of agreeing a deal that will keep him at the Bernabeu until 2030 in recent days, though the Brazilian's entourage has firmly denied those claims.
Vinicius' representatives claim Real Madrid have made just one formal offer of a contract renewal, and have failed to present fresh terms since the player made a counter-offer.
Manchester City risk losing key star to Real Madrid
While Real Madrid offered an annual salary of around £14.5m plus bonuses, Vinicius wanted a figure closer to the £25m-per-year Cristiano Ronaldo earned during his time in the Spanish capital.
Those figures are still a far cry from the £166m he is reportedly being offered from Saudi Arabia, making a potential agreement harder to achieve. As a result, Manchester City are nervously watching from afar as they prepare to fend off interest for one of their key players.
According to The Athletic, Real Madrid have already made their intentions known that Manchester City striker Erling Haaland is their "dream" successor should Vinicius depart.
President Florentino Perez is a huge admirer of the Norwegian forward, and has retained an interest in him despite failing to convince him to move to the Bernabeu prior to his 2022 Manchester City transfer.
Haaland's arrival would also allow Kylian Mbappe to return to his favoured left-wing spot, creating an even more devastating forward line as a result.
Real Madrid would have to pay well over the odds to land Haaland, though. Having recently signed a new deal that will keep him at the Etihad Stadium until 2034, Haaland would likely cost a world-record transfer fee.
Transfermarkt values him at £170m, though that fee would rise over the £200m mark if Real Madrid make an attempt.
In FourFourTwo's view, it seems inevitable that Vinicius Jr will extend his contract with Real Madrid and put to bed any speculation about them trying to sign Haaland. The Brazilian clearly still wants to win the Ballon d'Or, which would be difficult to do while playing in Saudi Arabia, while he won't earn as lucrative a contract elsewhere in Europe.
