Ligue 1 Defender Prefers To Join Real Madrid: Should Ancelotti Bring Him On Board? | OneFootball

In a recent interview with Rousing The Kop, journalist Graeme Bailey revealed that Lille defender Leny Yoro prefers to join Real Madrid this summer. Bailey said,

“In terms of Yoro, from what I’m told the English clubs who are interested in him, which is a lot – Chelsea, United, Liverpool – they all love him. But they think he wants to go to Real Madrid.

“So, that’s the issue with him. I’m not saying he would turn down any of these clubs, but from what I’m told his preference is Madrid.”

Yoro’s Impressive Rise In French Football

Yoro has enjoyed a solid campaign at the French club after he produced a string of dominant displays at the heart of their backline. The 18-year-old has scored three times in 44 matches for Lille this season on all fronts.

The gifted teenager has been a decent performer on the defensive end of the field as he is averaging 1.1 tackles, 1.1 interceptions and 3.0 clearances per 90 minutes in Ligue 1. He has even been accurate when distributing possession from the back based on his pass completion rate of 92.2% in league football (stats via whoscored).

Lille’s French defender Leny Yoro heads the ball during the French L1 football match between Lille LOSC and Olympique Lyonnais (OL) at Stade Pierre-Mauroy in Villeneuve-d’Ascq, northern France on March 10, 2023. (Photo by SAMEER AL-DOUMY/AFP via Getty Images)

Should Real Madrid Boss Carlo Ancelotti Bring Yoro On Board?

Yoro loves a tackle and can scan the danger well to make a few timely interceptions for his team inside his half. He doesn’t mind clearing his lines when the opposition are on the front foot.

Standing at 1.90m, the French talent can use his strong frame to win a few 50-50 aerial duels for his side. However, he is still quite inexperienced at the highest level and might struggle to make a smooth transition to life in Spanish football if Real Madrid manage to win the race for his services.

We can expect Yoro to add more bite and steel to Carlo Ancelotti’s defensive department. He might even help Los Blancos challenge for a lot of major honours over the next decade. At 18, Yoro has the potential to be a generational talent, so the Madrid giants would be wise to go all out to bring him on board at the end of this campaign. He would be a great fit for Real Madrid‘s needs in the long run.