Newcastle now set to face competition from Arsenal to sign Marco Asensio

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The future of Real Madrid forward Marco Asensio is very much up in the air with the forward frustrated at his lack of playing time under Carlo Ancelotti. It’s now believed that Arsenal have been the first to make their move ahead of Newcastle United.

Newcastle have been keeping tabs on Asensio’s availability for a while but with his Madrid exit looking ever more likely, it’s AC Milan and Arsenal who have made the first move according to Sport.es, The Spanish site also claims that Barcelona are also being kept in the loop after reports that they’d reached a “pre-agreement” with the player last year.

The 27-year-old attacking midfielder boasts an extremely impressive medal collection having won the Spanish League and cups, along with the Champions League and World Club Cup several times truly earning his badge as “world-class” from Vicente del Bosque.

Asensio has been given the cold shoulder by Ancelotti

It’s odd then, that under Ancelotti this season Asensio has only made seven starts, of which he has only finished one full game. Yet still, in the 18 appearances he’s made, however brief, he’s managed to score four times and provide three assists to go along with his two goals and one assist in the Champions League from seven appearances.

His goal scoring and assists ratios show that he’s still got a lot to offer which is why it’s no surprise that the likes of Newcastle, Arsenal and Milan are chasing his signature.

Asensio could have his pick of destinations

Asensio’s contract at Madrid expires this summer meaning he can make his next move on a free, however that often means that the wage and bonus demands are astronomical, and that’s where Newcastle could come unstuck if they don’t qualify for European football.

Given his pedigree, it’s likely that Asensio would prefer a move to a club playing in the Champions League, which again, puts Newcastle down the list unless they make a dramatic recovery this season and reclaim their top four spot in the Premier League.

It remains to be see how this “pre-agreement” situation with Barcelona plays out, but as it stands it sounds like they’re in the lead with Milan and Arsenal snapping at their heels and Newcastle someway off at the back struggling to keep pace.