Should Real Madrid go for Reus?

In this era of football, when big clubs look for a new signing they usually search for talented, young, relatively cheap footballers who have existing set of skills that make them an attraction for other teams yet still posses the means to excel even further. Of course, not all clubs tend to get their primary target because the credentials wanted are sparse in football players nowadays, however, one name does crop up that fits the criteria perfectly; that name is Marco Reus.

Reus has been linked with a move away from Dortmund for at least a season now and as his club continues languishing in the relegation zone, the news of his departure only grow each passing day. And for good reason, Reus has been a consistent source of goals and assists in a Dortmund team that currently sits 30 points behind leaders Bayern. What makes him even more enticing to big clubs is his low price, as his release clause will be set at 25 million euros when this season ends. A relatively cheap figure indeed when you consider the type of footballer you will be getting. Reus has scored or assisted 41 goals in 43 appearances last season even though Dortmund barely made it to the Champions League spots. So imagine what would he do in a club with enough resources to fight for titles. As all the clubs that are currently linked – Real Madrid, Bayern, PSG, Chelsea, and Man City – with him are deep in that category. However, it seems that a move to Bayern would be very difficult to happen since Dortmund are looking to bridge, not widen, the gap between their eternal rivals. While PSG, City and Chelsea also seem unlikely destinations for Reus as they currently struggle with FFP rules. That leaves just the reigning European champions Real madrid in contentions, and they do seem like the most logical and suitable place for Reus to go to. But do they need Reus?

Real are currently the most in-form team in the world so a transfer would seem to be unlikely but any person who has knows Florentino Perez, Real Madrid’s president, knows that’s probably not true. What might entice Real to get Reus is his relatively cheap price of just 25 million. And Real Madrid are certainly no strangers to paying ‘big bucks’ for young talented players as they have paid a combined 60 million for [23 year old] Asier Illarremndi and [21 year old] Isco just last season. They have also paid 30 million for 27-year old Luka Modric (at the time) and another 30 million for 23-year old Fabio Coentrao (at the time) in 2012 and 2011 respectively. So it looks like that the low release clause will certainly pose no problems for Real Madrid, but will Reus’s position be a problem for Ancelotti?

Marco Reus usually occupies any position in the fornt-line in Borussia Dortmund, and Real Madrid currently have Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale, Karim Benzema, and Jese Rodriguez in their front-line positions(Chicharito is just on loan), so where will Reus fit? First, you have to keep in mind that Real Madrid is a team that regularly competes for all titles each season, making them play an average of 60 matches per season in the last 4 seasons, that means that there is a very real possibility of injury and fatigue for key players in the team, and having just 4 players for your 3 front-line spots in the team seems like a risk when you’re playing 60 or more matches per season. That is exactly where a young yet experienced player with the enormous talent of Marco reus comes in handy. His presence would be an attacking option and a welcome selection headache for Carlo Ancelotti. Because Cristiano Ronaldo will be 30 years old in a couple of months and Jese Rodrigues is still a 21-year old player who has the skills but comes up a bit short in the experience department. So having an alternative that still maintains his youthful exuberance coupled with the experience of  playing 2 cup finals and a Champions League final when he’s just 25 years old, is a valuable thing indeed. Plus, lest we forget, he has already scored 3 goals vs Real Madrid across the last 2 seasons in the Champions League.

So, is Marco Reus an essential player that Real Madrid desperately need to compete in the coming seasons? No. But is he a player Real Madrid need in order to maintain their front-line’s high level in the deep end of the season and provide a starting alternative in the near future? Yes.