Real Madrid have paused their interest in Monaco midfielder Thomas Lemar in the wake of Zinedine Zidane’s shock departure, claims Spanish outlet Sport.
Los Blancos were stunned by Zidane’s decision to step down as Madrid’s head coach just days after leading the club to their third straight European title.
Madrid were already in the process of mapping out this summer’s transfer targets, with Liverpool forward Sadio Mane and Monaco star Lemar on their radar.
The European champions reportedly even agreed personal terms with Mane prior to Zidane’s resignation, only to put the brakes on a deal for the Senegal international.
It has now emerged that Madrid have been forced to re-think their pursuit of Lemar in the wake of Zidane’s departure, allow Atletico Madrid to swoop in for the France international.
Atletico have already had a €60m bid for Lemar knocked back by Monaco and the French giants are reportedly demanding in the region of €80m for the talented 22-year-old.
Despite an indifferent campaign last term, Lemar still provided the most assists for Monaco in Ligue 1 (8). Furthermore, since August 2016, only Thomas Mangani (70) has created more goalscoring chances from set pieces than Lemar (50) in Ligue 1.
