Serge Gnabry and 10 others – List of players revealed Real Madrid never had interest in signing

Real Madrid have their pick of players on the transfer market for the most part, with plenty of wealth behind them, and enough prestige to attract anyone in the world. However, it also leads to a number of players' agents using their brand to secure better contracts for their clients.

In a recent report, Brand explain that it is a relatively common practice for the Blancos to be “used” by agents in order to inflate the interest in their clients, or to negotiate better terms, something that happens throughout the football pyramid.

One of the examples they give, however, is probably against them on Wednesday night, in Serge Gnabry of Bayern Munich. Frequently linked with Real Madrid two years ago, he ended up renewing his agreement with Bayern until 2026. The day of Madrid-based also list Dusan Vlahovic of Juventus, Randal Kolo Muani, Hugo Ekitike, Victor Osimhen and Kai Havertz as potential replacements or back-ups for Karim Benzema that have been suggested without any basis. Meanwhile, replacements for the injured Eder Militao, such as Robert Renan and Goncalo Inacio, were equally lacking in substance.

The returns for Cristiano Ronaldo, Sergio Ramos or Raphael Varane seemed to be on the hour, and they also lacked the basics. They say that another Bayern star in Harry Kane was of real interest last summer, and conveniently omits the name of Alphonso Davies, who has been heavily linked with a move to Real Madrid this summer

Provided that the clubs and agents have a plausible deniability, it can be difficult to cut the leaks that they make in the public domain. In general, the likelihood of a deal happening can be estimated by looking at the manager, the club's transfer history, and the player's fit with the club.