Real Madrid Plan Raid of Rivals With Move for £53m-Rated Atletico Madrid Defender

Real Madrid have reportedly jumped ahead of Arsenal in the race to sign Atletico Madrid centre back Jose Gimenez. 

The Uruguayan has been on the radar of the Gunners for some time, but Los Blancos are ready to take their interest one step further.

Gimenez was outlined ahead of this summer as a key option that could strengthen Arsenal's leaky defence. Having been on their radar for a number of months, Arsenal are believed to have been preparing a bid for Gimenez this summer, but it seems they are about to miss out.

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According to Marca (via TalkSPORT), Real Madrid are about to overtake Unai Emery's newly inherited side in the race to sign the 23-year-old and could activate his £53m release clause.

The report seems quite adamant that Gimenez will be joining the European champions from city rivals Atletico this summer, adding to Zinedine Zidane's already impressive back line and leaving Arsenal empty handed in the process.

However, the highly anticipated arrival of Borussia Dortmund centre back Sokratis Papastathopoulos, who is expected to make his way to the Emirates in the coming days, should alleviate any resentment from Gunners fans if they are to miss out on Gimenez. 

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As for Madrid, should Gimenez arrive, where exactly he would slot into the team is unknown. With the defensive partnership of Sergio Ramos and Raphael Varane only getting stronger, it's hard to tell what role Gimenez would play. Even so, the 23-year-old already has three trophies to his name (the Europa League, Spanish Super Cup and the La Liga title), and has 41 caps and four goals for his native Uruguay.

It remains to be seen if Madrid will attempt to secure Gimenez's signature before or after the World Cup, as his value may decrease or increase based on his performances in Russia.