Real Madrid step up efforts to win race for £60m Chelsea transfer target

Real Madrid have reportedly been stepping up their interest in beating Chelsea to the transfer of Manchester City star Raheem Sterling.

The England winger is set to enter the final year of his contract and, having lost his regular starting position, has been linked with a move this summer with several European clubs touted as potential destinations.

The attacker’s current contract at the Etihad expires in 2023, meaning he could begin negotiations about a potential free move away from City in just nine months’ time. He is either expected to renew his deal or to leave in the summer transfer window.

With the Premier League champions reportedly prepared to sell Sterling this summer, Chelsea are one of the clubs that are weighing up an offer as per Sky Sports, who suggest he’d cost around £60million to prise away from City this summer.

According to the Daily Mirror, Real Madrid are getting pretty serious about signing the former Liverpool man, who is facing the biggest dilemma of his career this summer.

The Mirror suggest Sterling has long had ambitions of playing abroad at some point in his career, so now could be the ideal opportunity.

It remains to seen if the 27-year-old favours a return to London, where he grew up, or if he decides not to join one of City’s rivals and enjoy a spell abroad instead.