According to reports from The Express yesterday evening, Arsenal and Liverpool target Asier Illarramendi has been informed that he’s surplus to requirements at Real Madrid.
The Spanish giants signed the defensive midfielder for a whopping €32.2million in summer 2013 – the highest fee they’ve ever paid for a Spaniard – after claiming La Liga’s Breakthrough Player of the Year award and Best Midfielder award during his first full campaign at Real Sociedad.
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He was billed as the ‘new Xabi Alonso’, sharing the former Liverpool star’s long-range passing game. But he’s struggled to hold down a role in the Real starting Xi over the likes of Luka Modric and Toni Kroos, managing just ten starts in La Liga last season.
Arsenal and Liverpool are both long-term admirers of the 25 year-old, and Illarramendi is believed to have already turned down the opportunity of an Anfield switch this summer.
But according to The Express, the former Spain U21 has now been informed that he’s surplus to requirements at the Bernabeu and free to find another club – suggesting a move to the Premier League could be back on.
He’s reportedly valued by Liverpool at around the £15million mark.