Mateo Kovacic has been identified by Manchester United as a potential replacement for Michael Carrick.
The Croatian midfield maestro has been unable to gain a regular run of games at the Bernabeu behind Casemiro, Luka Modric and Toni Kroos.
But Le 10 Sport believe Jose Mourinho will offer the 23-year-old a starring role at Old Trafford.
With Michael Carrick now set to retire, the Red Devils need to sign a passing midfielder and Kovacic could be just the man.
Why Alexis Sanchez's stats show he may struggle to get into Manchester United's first team
Alexis Sanchez may actually struggle to get into Manchester United's first team if this season's stats are anything to go by.
The Chilean completed his stunning move to the Red Devils on Monday. The transfer saw Henrikh Mkhitaryan move in the opposite direction, to Arsenal.
The winger is available to make his debut against Yeovil in the FA Cup on Friday, but may well have to settle for a place on the bench.
Why? Well data courtesy of EA SPORTS actually shows Sanchez has worse stats than new team-mates Jesse Lingard and Anthony Martial.
Romelu Lukaku 'not helped by Jose Mourinho's style of play', fears former Man United star
Manchester United fans are yet to see the best of Romelu Lukaku but former striker Louis Saha is sure they will.
Consistency has evaded the powerful Belgian front man with Saha suggesting Jose Mourinho's style of play hasn't helped him.
The 24-year-old joined United for £75 million on a five-year contract last July after scoring 25 league goals in 37 matches in the last campaign for Everton.
His prolific form garnered interest from several leading sides in Europe, including former club Chelsea, where he previously worked under United manager Mourinho.