Alvaro Carreras has been linked with a move away from Real Madrid during the summer transfer window.

The 23-year-old is a target for Chelsea, Arsenal and Manchester United. However, Chelsea could have an advantage over the other two clubs in the race for the defender.

Carreras has worked with Xabi Alonso, and the newly appointed Chelsea manager could play a key role in any potential move. According to Sports Boom, Real Madrid wants around €50 million for the defender. It remains to be seen whether Chelsea is prepared to break the Bank for him.

They have sanctioned Marc Cucurella’s departure to Real Madrid, and they need to replace him properly. The 23-year-old defender could be a solid long-term investment. He played 28 league matches for Real Madrid last season and recorded five goal contributions. There is no doubt he has the quality to play in the Premier League. He will look to help defensively and create opportunities going forward.

On the other hand, Arsenal are keeping tabs on the player. They are already well-stocked in the defensive unit, and it would be quite surprising if they decided to invest in the 23-year-old. They should look to sign a quality midfielder and a couple of quality attackers instead.

Finally, Manchester United’s interest in the defender is hardly a surprise. They need a long-term alternative to Luke Shaw, and the 23-year-old Spanish defender could be ideal for them. He is young enough to improve further, and he’s already competing at a high level.

The asking price could be a problem for the Premier League club, and it remains to be seen whether they can convince Real Madrid to be more reasonable with their demands.

With Cucurella joining the club, Carreras could be tempted to move on. He will be hoping to play regularly, and sitting on the bench at Real Madrid will not be a part of the plan.

The post Alonso could give Chelsea edge over Arsenal & Man United in €50m transfer race appeared first on CaughtOffside.

Chelsea could reportedly be exploring a major transfer raid on Xabi Alonso’s former club Real Madrid this summer.

According to Simon Phillips, the Blues have used recent talks with Real Madrid over Marc Cucurella’s sale to also ask about five of their players.

DOWNLOAD THE OFFICIAL CAUGHTOFFSIDE APP FOR ALL THE LATEST & BREAKING UPDATES – STRAIGHT TO YOUR PHONE! ON APPLE & GOOGLE PLAY

Chelsea are seemingly keen on the likes of Alvaro Carreras, Arda Guler, Aurelien Tchouameni, Victor Valdepenas, and Dean Huijsen.

Huijsen was notably a target for Chelsea while he was at Bournemouth, while Carreras could be an interesting one to watch as he’s directly impacted by the arrival of another left-back in the form of Cucurella.

What’s going on with Chelsea’s transfer strategy?

It’s early days yet for Chelsea in this transfer window, but the sale of Cucurella is unlikely to inspire much confidence.

This was an experienced and consistent performer in a generally struggling squad, and the speed at which the deal was done perhaps indicates that CFC didn’t even put up much of a fight to persuade him to stay, or to at the very least get a bigger fee from his sale.

Chelsea signed Cucurella for a £60m package in 2022, as per BBC Sport, and the fee reported by BBC Sport for the Spain international’s move to the Bernabeu is just under that at £51.8m.

Want more CaughtOffside coverage? Add us as a preferred source on Google to your favourites list for news you can trust

Even if Chelsea do replace Cucurella with Carreras, that’s a bit of a risk for a player who’d possibly end up looking like a downgrade rather than an upgrade.

Some of those other Madrid players could be exciting additions, particularly Tchouameni or Guler, but it remains to be seen how likely it is that players of that calibre would now move to Stamford Bridge.

More Stories / Latest News

Tottenham ‘actively in talks’ for £100m midfielder as journalist drops exciting update

Jun 18 2026, 0:42

Harry Kane reveals what Thomas Tuchel said at half-time that inspired England’s win over Croatia

Jun 17 2026, 23:57

Watch: €50m Tottenham & Aston Villa target scores stunning goal vs England

Jun 17 2026, 21:52

Chelsea don’t have European football next season after finishing 10th in the Premier League, and the current project just doesn’t seem to be heading in a positive direction at all.

Perhaps Alonso’s presence can persuade some players to join, especially if they’ve already worked under him and have seen just how successful a coach he can be.

The post Report: Chelsea ask about five players from Xabi Alonso’s former club appeared first on CaughtOffside.

Chelsea are in need of a left-back after Marc Cucurella’s move to Real Madrid was confirmed on Monday, depositing €55m (£47.5m) plus €5m (£4.3m) in variables in their accounts. The solution could well be found at the Santiago Bernabeu.

One of the reasons that Chelsea were comfortable allowing Cucurella to leave is the development of Jorrel Hato, who they believe can step into the void left by the Spain international. The 27-year-old had also expressed a desire to return to Spain, and with two years left on his deal, it perhaps made sense for the Blues to cash in. Nevertheless, Hato is their only specialist at left-back now.

Chelsea weighing up move for Alvaro Carreras

As a product of Cucurella arriving at Real Madrid, Los Blancos now have four left-backs on their books, with Fran Garcia, Ferland Mendy and Alvaro Carreras. The latter of course arrived only last summer for a fee of €50m from Benfica, and did so with the approval of Xabi Alonso, who was arriving as manager at the time too.

According to Diario AS, Chelsea are now considering a move for Carreras. Alonso is familiar with him, and Carreras would have no issues adapting to English football, having previously been at Manchester United and played on loan at Preston North End. They say that Los Blancos would be looking to be recover most of the fee they spent for him, and while Carreras is keen to stay, the door could be open to a move if Cucurella is a de facto starter.

Carreras’ debut season at Real Madrid

Carreras’ first season in Spain more or less mirrored that of Alonso, starting off in fine fashion and becoming one of the early contenders for best signings in the first third of the year. As things started to go wrong, Carreras’ form nosedived though, and he finished the season out of the team, behind both Garcia and Mendy. He also had a run-in with Antonio Rudiger in training, reportedly being slapped by the ex-Chelsea centre-back.

The post Chelsea weighing up move for €50m La Liga defender who has worked with Xabi Alonso appeared first on CaughtOffside.