Real Madrid are reportedly set to rival Manchester City in summer pursuit of Rayo Vallecano star Johan Mojica, who is currently on loan at Girona.
As per the report from Spanish publication Don Balon, Real Madrid are keeping tabs on another rising Spaniard. The player in question is 25-year-old Johan Mojica, who has caught the eye with his performance on-loan at Girona from Rayo Vallecano. The defender is also being tailed by Pep Guardiola and his Manchester City side.
The 25-year-old has always been lauded out on loan by Rayo Vallecano season after season. Johan Mojica could be called a late bloomer, with the player only emerging on the radar of top clubs during his current loan spell at Girona, a club that has also taken La Liga by storm with their tenacity and football this season.
One of the first names on the Girona team sheet this season, Mojica’s ability to play on any position on the left is an added bonus, something which seems to have caught the eye of Manchester City – a team that has a standing business relationship with Girona – and now, Real Madrid.
At Manchester City, the left-back area is still something the Citizens could look to improve upon, despite spending so much on defenders. Benjamin Mendy, City’s only natural left-back has been out all season thanks to a long-term injury. This has seen Pep Guardiola utilise Oleksandr Zinchenko and Fabian Delph at the said position.
And while City have been great this season, Guardiola would want better cover at left-back, which is where Mojica comes in. The 25-year-old would not be as hard a pinch financially for Manchester City, compared to other targets while also being a player that would be ready to accept the role of squad rotation, with Benjamin Mendy the first-choice when fit.
At Real Madrid, Florentino Perez is looking for a player to act as a cover for Marcelo, who arguably has been their best performing defenders for the past couple of seasons. While Madrid did sign Theo Hernandez, the report says that the former Atletico Madrid player’s future largely hinges upon Zinedine Zidane’s own future at the club.
The report further states that Theo could look elsewhere for first-team opportunities, with the player not getting much game time at Real Madrid. Mojica on the other hand, could be enticed with the prospect of donning the iconic Los Blancos jersey and would gladly accept being the understudy of Marcelo, in all likeliness.
Mojica is thus, a summer target for both the clubs as they set about achieving their respective targets. For Manchester City, the mission is to grow on their current domination in the domestic region while for Real Madrid, the goal will be to topple their arch-rivals Barcelona once again.