Real Madrid have reportedly identified Newcastle United midfielder Bruno Guimaraes as the ideal replacement for Casemiro, with the latter closing in on a switch to Manchester United.
Casemiro is believed to be on the verge of securing a £60m move to Old Trafford, with the Brazil international set to sign a five-year contract with the 20-time English champions.
According to AS, Real Madrid have already identified a replacement for the holding midfielder, with Guimares viewed as their leading target in the latter stages of the transfer window.
However, the report claims that Carlo Ancelotti's side could ultimately be priced out of a move for the midfielder, who would cost substantially more than the £40m that Newcastle paid Lyon in January.
The Magpies are also under no pressure to sell the Brazilian, with their takeover making them one of the wealthiest clubs in world football.
© Reuters
A number of clubs had been linked with Guimaraes earlier this year, but Newcastle were able to come to an agreement with Lyon over a mid-season move.
The South American starred for Eddie Howe's side in the second half of last season, scoring five times and registering one assist in 17 Premier League appearances.
Guimaraes has also played the full 90 minutes of both of his side's Premier League games at the start of this campaign - a 2-0 win over Nottingham Forest on August 6 and a goalless draw with Brighton & Hove Albion last weekend.
Real Madrid boss Ancelotti and president Florentino Perez have said on a number of occasions that their summer transfer business has finished following the arrivals of Antonio Rudiger and Aurelien Tchouameni.
© Reuters
However, the departure of Casemiro would almost certainly see Los Blancos enter the market for a replacement despite already being well-stocked in that area of the field.
Tchouameni and Eduardo Camavinga both started last weekend's La Liga clash with Almeria, but the pair found it difficult to make their mark in what proved to be a 2-1 win for the champions.
"The young players did not play as they know how to do. I know, I see them every day in training, they are not used to playing like this," Ancelotti told reporters when discussing the performances of the midfield duo.
"They can do much better. Camavinga, I took him out at the break, not because he wasn't playing well, only because with his yellow card, it didn't make sense to take a risk."
Real Madrid will be back in La Liga action against Celta Vigo on Saturday, with Casemiro now unlikely to be involved amid the speculation surrounding his future.
