The five Real Madrid players who could leave in January

Stuart Telford

• Updated: 23 May 2023 09:00 CDT
• 5 min read

As Spanish and European champions, Real Madrid could be forgiven for thinking if it ain't broke, don't fix it, but there could still be some movement out of the Santiago Bernabeu in the January transfer window…

Real is the ultimate target destination for almost every player in world football, and los Blancos rarely sell a player unless it is their decision to do so.

Possible Real Madrid departures in January 2023

The record 14-time European champions, the boast a phenomenal squad, but that doesn't mean there isn't some dead wood to clear out from time to time, and this January could be one such window.

READ: Bellingham's Real Madrid transfer to happen sooner than expected

Football Transfers takes a closer look…

Dani Ceballos

One player earmarked for a departure in January is Dani Ceballos, with the 26-year-old having made just three La Liga starts this season.

Ceballos arrived in Madrid in 2017 as a highly-rated youngster but he has failed to live up to expectations and is now a bit part player for the European Champions, with his deal up at the end of the season.

Marco Asensio

Asensio has fallen out of favour at the Bernabeu, with Vinicius Junior, Federico Valverde and Rodrygo preferred in the wide attacking positions this season while Asensio has been restricted to just one La Liga start and 179 minutes in total.

Like Ceballos, Asensio is out of contract in the summer of 2023 and Arsenal, Juventus and a host of other Premier League clubs are ready to pounce before then, bagging the Spain international winger at a knock-down price.

Eden Hazard

Hazard remains Real's most expensive signing of all time following his €146.1 million arrival from Chelsea in the summer of 2019, comfortably clear of Gareth Bale and Cristiano Ronaldo on that particular podium, but things simply haven't worked out for the Belgian winger.

In the three-and-a-half seasons since, Hazard has returned seven goals and 11 assists, and Real desperately want the 31-year-old off their books before the expiration of his contract in 2024. Big-money, middle-status teams in the Premier League like Newcastle and Aston Villa look like his most likely destinations.

Alvaro Odriozola

Odriozola is another who has no future at the Bernabeu. Real are well-stocked at right-back with Dani Carvajal their first-choice and Lucas Vazquez his first understudy, and Odriozola has been told to look for a new club.

Previously loaned out to Bayern Munich and Fiorentina, a return to Italy could be on the cards - even on a temporary basis - unless Nottingham Forest decide they need yet another player in the position in the January transfer window.

Mariano Diaz

Previously a free-scoring striker for Real Madrid's B and C teams, and also during a loan spell with Lyon in 2018/19, Diaz simply can't catch a break with los Blancos' first team.

Karim Benzema is injured, Endrick won't arrive until the summer of 2024, and yet Real have still been linked with a move for a striker, from Ronaldo to Richarlison. Wolverhampton Wanderers are the latest to have sounded out a deal.