Three clubs than could rescue Lunin from the Real Madrid bench

It’s not easy being Thibaut Courtois’ backup. Andriy Lunin knows this too well, having made just one appearance for Real Madrid, despite moving to the Spanish capital from Zorya Lugansk the same summer that Courtois arrived from Chelsea.

Lunin has been out on various loan spells in the three and a half years since then, although even then he earned just two appearances at Real Valladolid and seven at Leganés. At Real Oviedo in Spain’s second division, he was at least able to rack up 20 outings over the second half of 2019/20.

Since the summer of 2020, the Ukrainian has been Real Madrid’s number two and he has only seen the pitch once, in a 2-1 Copa del Rey defeat to third-tier Alcoyano on January 20th of this year. 298 days have passed since then and Lunin hasn’t had an opportunity, even though Carlo Ancelotti clearly likes him.

It’s just so difficult to bench a top-class goalkeeper like Courtois, especially when there are no easy games anymore in LaLiga Santander. This means that Lunin may need to try another loan if he is to show what he can do. If the 22-year-old does depart in January, MARCA have outlined three clubs who have already expressed an interest.

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Granada

One of the clubs that could be interested in acquiring Lunin on loan is Granada, who have had a tough start to the new season and who have a question mark at goalkeeper after the summer departure of Rui Silva. Although Luís Maximiano was brought in for €4.5m, he hasn’t fully convinced and this could give Lunin an opportunity to win the job.

Espanyol

There is another Spanish suitor, with Espanyol also linked with a January move for Lunin. Former Real Madrid goalkeeper Diego López is their current starter and he is performing well, but he is 40 years of age and Lunin might be able to share minutes with the veteran.

Lille

The other club that reportedly has an interest in Lunin is Lille. The French champions lost their title-winning shot-stopper Mike Maignan in the summer and replaced him with Atlético Madrid loanee Ivo Grbic, who has taken over from Léo Jardim as the starter since arriving. But, Lille are now believed to be considering a move that would see them rescue another backup goalkeeper from a Madrid bench.

If Lunin does depart on a loan this January, he and Real Madrid need to choose wisely. He has already had two completely failed loan spells, where he was almost as much of a backup as he is now. Perhaps the best option is to wait and see if a club loses their starter through transfer or injury. Because Lunin needs to play and soon.