Open Thread: February 16, 2021

The Open Thread/Daily Merengue is a place where you can discuss anything and everything related to football. Feel free to discuss the topics presented here, or start your very own discussions! The Open thread will be posted every day by one of the mods: Valyrian Steel, Felipejack, YoSnail or Oscnar.

Alaba to announce his decision tomorrow.

German news outlet Bild reported that Alaba will announce his decision tomorrow. Real Madrid are his most likely destination, but he has offers from Liverpool, Manchester United and Chelsea. Fabrizio Romano also reported that Alaba’s pre-contract with Real Madrid is almost ready, but they have a verbal agreement. It’s a deal until 2025 with a salary of €12m per season. Real Madrid are expected to complete the agreement soon.

Josep Pedrerol: Ramos will leave the club this summer.

Sensationalist anchor Josep Pedrerol of ElChiringuito TV stated that “There’s no going back. Ramos will leave the club this summer. The only question is how and when it will be announced”. He further went on to say that Real Madrid have started planning for next season without Sergio Ramos.

The club meanwhile put out a tweet showing the captain recovering from his injury.

European Football Returns.

The Champions League knockout stages have become an absolute must-watch in recent years - and it is time for the pinnacle of club football to get under way this week. This week will feature the following 1st leg ties:

Barcelona vs PSG, Liverpool vs Leipzig, Porto vs Juventus and Dortmund vs Sevilla.

Madridistas will have to wait till next week to see their side take on Atalanta.

ICYMI: Injuries at Real Madrid: potential reasons and causes.

This article on Managing Madrid looks at why Real’s injuries are still a hot topic for discussion. Give it a read.