Better than Joselu, the number 9 Xabi Alonso has requested from Florentino after the World Cup

Real Madrid is already counting down to face Al-Hilal in the Club World Cup, a first match that will put everything rehearsed in recent weeks to the test. Under Xabi Alonso's new tactical leadership, the team is expected to get back on the winning track immediately, especially considering the signings made and planned for this summer transfer window.

Among those moves toward Santiago Bernabéu locker room is one of the main demands of the Basque coach: the acquisition of a center forward. Although Kylian Mbappé will play that role, perhaps alongside Vinícius in a hypothetical 4-4-2, for the Tolosa manager, it doesn't seem to be a sufficient tactical option.

Because he has formally requested at the Valdebebas offices the acquisition of a striker similar to Joselu: a box "killer" who can unlock matches in the final minutes... who is powerful in the air, a characteristic that isn't very common among the current members of the first team's forward roster.

That's why the first team's coach insists on a signing that fits a wide range of footballers. The Valdebebas offices reacted quickly to that request, making it clear that they weren't willing to invest large amounts of money... considering the investment made in other more demanded reinforcements, especially in the defensive area.

Debates continue

Xabi Alonso accepted that limitation and, since then, has proposed the profile of footballers who could even deliver better results than Joselu himself. Surpassing the numbers of a footballer who is taken as a "model" to expand the white squad could be a challenge worthy of strikers like Ante Budimir. The veteran Osasuna forward, currently 33 years old, is one of the most talked-about options in the Valdebebas offices.

However, this doesn't mean that Madrid's negotiators are close to paying his release clause, set at just eight million euros (€8 million) this summer. Nor does the competition from Patrick Schick, a player Xabi Alonso knows perfectly from Bayer Leverkusen, imply a move in that direction by the white board of directors.

The information handled by Mario Cortegana reveals that Real Madrid "is looking for" a footballer who resembles the profile offered by Joselu during the last soccer season. Options like Ante Budimir and Patrick Schick are the most recurring in the rumor mill in that regard, but there are also other remote options such as Dusan Vlahovic.

That's why Real Madrid will keep evaluating its options, according to the journalist from "The Athletic", until it finds the player who fits in Santiago Bernabéu locker room... and in the expectations of the main promoter of his signing, Xabi Alonso, and his recruiters: the merengue sporting management.