4 players who could still join Real Madrid this month

  It has been an eventful summer at Real Madrid in terms of transfers, but perhaps not one that has made them stronger. They have lost their best player, and are yet to bring anyone in to replace him. However, there are still a couple of weeks left in the transfer window to bring in a capable replacement. It has been a turbulent summer at the Bernabeu. Just days after winning their third straight Champions League title, Zinedine Zidane announced that he was quitting as manager. He was later replaced by Julen Lopetegui, who, after his own controversy, was sacked as Spain manager on the eve of the World Cup in Russia.

   

It has been a tough summer so far for Lopetegui. He saw his star man in Cristiano Ronaldo leave the club just weeks after taking over, and is yet to replace the Portuguese superstar. There have been a couple of arrivals. Vinicius Jr and Alvaro Odriozola were the early arrivals this summer, and Thibaut Courtois made the move from Chelsea in August, becoming the highest-profile signing at the Bernabeu. This clearly hasn’t impressed the Real faithful, with 48,466 turning up for the opening game with Getafe, their lowest league attendance in nine years.

            It is clear that the performance level isn’t as high as they’d want it to be. They lost 4-2 in the Super Cup final to Atletico Madrid, then beat Getafe 2-0 at the weekend. It is clear that the fans will be hoping for another marquee signing before the transfer window draws to a close, and here are five men they could look to bring in.

  

 . 1 Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich)

 This one just won’t go away. Lewandowski is one of the world’s top strikers, and he has proved that during his time playing in the Bundesliga. The Polish striker has scored 180 goals in eight seasons playing in Germany’s top division and has been the league’s top goalscorer an impressive three times. Real saw his goalscoring prowess first hand when he scored four times against them playing for Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League during the 2012/13 season. He has made no secret this summer of his desire to move to Real Madrid. He is now 29, so is at the peak of his career, and will probably not have another chance to make his dream move to Spain. He is definitely a player that would improve Real, especially seeing as they have lost the goals of Ronaldo. Karim Benzema is a good striker, but his goal record over the last two seasons suggest Real will want to bring in another striker, and Lewandowski could be that man.

2 Rodrigo (Valencia)

Rodrigo may not be the big name that Real fans are begging for, but he is certainly a man who has impressed manager Julen Lopetegui. The striker scored 16 league goals for Valencia last season, which earned him a place in Lopetegui’s Spain World Cup squad, and he may have played a big part at the tournament, had his manager not been sacked days before it got underway. Valencia have made it clear that they don’t want to sell Rodrigo this summer, and Real will have to activate his £107 million release clause if they are to sign him. However good a season he had last season, Real shouldn’t pay that much for the 27-year-old. Prior to last season, his goal record was average at best. In his previous three seasons in Spain, he scored just ten goals. He may be a decent squad player, but he definitely isn’t worth £107 million.

3 Timo Werner (RB Leipzig)

A poor summer at the World Cup shouldn’t distract from the fact that he is an excellent young striker. The German wasn’t alone in putting in poor performances for the Germans, and there was only so much he could do with the quality of the performances around him. He is still only 22 and has scored 34 goals in 63 games in the Bundesliga. He has been key to RB Leipzig’s impressive form over the last two seasons, which has seen them twice qualify for the Champions League. This wasn’t a move many people talked about but was reported in Spanish paper Marca after a poll suggested a number of Real supporters wanted the club to sign Werner. Once again, he isn’t the biggest name. He is, however, a superb finisher, and would undoubtedly thrive in this Real Madrid team. He may need time to show what he is capable of doing at the Bernabeu, and that is something he may not be afforded.

4 Mauro Icardi (Inter Milan)

If Real are looking for someone who will guarantee goals immediately, Icardi is their man. The 25-year-old has been exceptional for Inter in Serie A over the last few years and has really cemented his position as one of the top strikers in world football. He has scored 100 league goals for Inter in just 160 games, including netting 29 last season.