Atletico Madrid interested in shock move for England international

Atletico Madrid manager Diego Simeone wants to sign Premier League duo Jamie Vardy and Alexis Sanchez to bolster the club’s offensive options ahead of their move to the Estadio La Peineta next season, reports The Independent.

Simeone’s side were dumped out of the Champions League by Real Madrid for the fourth time in the last four seasons on Wednesday night and the Atletico manager is already planning ahead to next season in a bid to close the gap on their rivals once more.

However, Atletico’s entire transfer strategy hinges on whether they are successful in overturning a FIFA-imposed transfer ban, which is currently being dealt with in the Court of Arbitration for Sport [CaS].

Nevertheless, Simeone is putting plans in place to bolster his squad and is prioritising a fast striker to play ahead of Antoine Griezmann to help revitalise the Atletico attack.

Simeone was reportedly impressed with Vardy’s performances when Atletico knocked Leicester out of the Champions League last month and is interested in bringing the England international to Spain, while he is also a huge admirer of Sanchez.

The Arsenal striker will only have 12 months to run on his existing deal at the end of the season and his future remains unclear with further contract talks not due to happen until the summer.

Vardy has rediscovered his best form since Claudio Ranieri was sacked as Leicester manager in February. In fact, the 30-year-old has scored or assisted 12 goals in his last 14 matches in all competitions for Leicester.

For more stats on Jamie Vardy, click here to visit his WhoScored player page