Spanish football expert Guillem Balague believes Chelsea and Real Madrid could agree a deal this summer for Eden Hazard, with the Belgian international identified as a replacement for Gareth Bale.

Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah has been linked with Real this season after scoring 36 goals in all competitions for the Reds, but Balague believes the £200m asking price mooted in the media would put Los Blancos off from making an approach.

“The people I talk to have not mentioned (Salah) as a candidate to become a Galactico. As a star of the Premier League, there’s a lot of things to go for, but if they get Hazard they won’t need Salah. It seems like they wouldn’t put that kind of money into Salah,” he said on Sky Sports’ Spanish Football Weekly podcast.

Hazard has been linked with Real Madrid before Chelsea procured his signature from Lille in 2012, and Balague believes the £200k-per-week star wants to join the Spanish giants, adding: “Hazard is desperate to come” . He won’t be cheap, however, with the 27-year-old valued at £118.2m.

Gareth Bale has been rumoured to be on his way out of Real Madrid to join Manchester United this summer. Years of injury troubles have caused him to miss so many games for the European champions and president Florentino Perez could accept a bid for the right price if they have a replacement lined up.

Real have tried to sign Hazard for the last six years, but they could succeed this time round as Balague says he’s open to the switch.

Stats from Transfermarkt.