Tottenham Hotspur have been dealt a setback in their bid to bring Malo Gusto to the Premier League.
What's the talk?
That's according to French media outlet Foot Mercato, who claim that, following reports back in October revealing that Spurs have been scouting the Olympique Lyonnais right-back ahead of a potential move for the 19-year-old, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich have now joined the race for the France U21 international.
The report goes on to state that, should the Ligue 1 side be forced into the sale of the defender, they would prefer Gusto to move to Madrid due to the 'excellent relationship' the two clubs share, something that will certainly come as a blow to both Antonio Conte and Fabio Paratici.
The next Alphonso Davies
Considering the meteoric rise Gusto has enjoyed over the last year or so, coupled with how poor Emerson Royal has largely been at right-back since his £26m move to Spurs last summer, it is not difficult to understand why Tottenham would be interested in a deal to bring the Lyon sensation to north London.
Indeed, over his 14 Ligue 1 appearances so far this season, the £23m-rated talent has been in sensational defensive form, helping his side keep one clean sheet, as well as making an average of 2.1 tackles, 1.5 interceptions, 0.9 clearances and winning 4.7 duels - at a success rate of 52% - per game.
The £6.7k-per-week full-back has also caught the eye going forwards, registering one assist and creating three big chances for his teammates, in addition to making an average of 1.3 key passes, playing 2.4 long balls and completing 0.9 dribbles per game.
These returns have seen the player who Jacek Kulig dubbed "one of the most talented full-backs in France" average an extremely impressive SofaScore match rating of 7.04, currently ranking the youngster as Laurent Blanc's fifth-best performer in the top flight of French football.
Furthermore, according to FBref, the 19-year-old ranks in the top 15% of full-backs in Europe's big five leagues for assists per 90, as well as the top 10% for xAG, the top 28% for shot-creating actions, the top 5% for passes attempted, the top 17% for passes completed, the top 16% for dribbles completed and the top 35% for progressive passes over the last 365 days.
As such, it is clear to see that the "special" 19-year-old is a very forward-thinking option at right-back, with it being no surprise that FBref list Bayern Munich's Alphonso Davies - who has scored six goals and registered 21 assists over his 134 appearances for the German side - as one of Gusto's most comparable players.
As such, with reports suggesting that Conte would be willing to part with Emerson this winter, should Paratici manage to get a deal over the line for Gusto, not only would the Italian appear to have landed a big upgrade on the Brazilian, but he could also have unearthed the next Davies - something that is sure to be an extremely exciting prospect for all involved with Spurs.