Report: Real Madrid alerted to David Luiz's fallout at Chelsea

David Luiz’s apparently fractious relationship with Antonio Conte could trigger a winter move to Real Madrid for the Brazilian.

A slow start to the season from the back-to-back Champions League winner has increased the likelihood that Los Blancos manager Zinedine Zidane will enter the January transfer market, and The Telegraph’s Matt Law understands Chelsea’s Luiz is being sighted.

The centre-back is rumoured to have fallen out with Conte following both his reaction to being substituted in the 3-3 home draw with Roma in October, and his role in the 3-0 defeat in the reverse fixture at the end of that month. Luiz was believed to have trained alone after that embarrassing loss, and was dropped for the subsequent visit from Manchester United after allegedly questioning Conte’s tactics, reports Law. He followed that expulsion by being an unused substitute against West Bromwich Albion and Liverpool, either side of playing the full 90 minutes at Azerbaijani minnow Qarabag.

Conte revealed Luiz will miss Wednesday’s match against Swansea City, and was vague about how long the 30-year-old will be out with a knee issue.

“I must be honest, in this moment it’s very difficult for me to answer how long David Luiz will be out,” Conte said. “It will be up to the doctor to assess the situation very well and then to take the best decision for the player.”

Conte expressed concerns over the depth of his squad before the season began, but his backline seems to be one of the better stocked areas in his lineup. Gary Cahill, Cesar Azpilicueta, Andreas Christensen, Antonio Rudiger, and youth-team products Jake Clarke-Salter and Dujon Sterling are all able to slot into Conte’s back-three if Luiz leaves for the Santiago Bernabeu.

Luiz was surprisingly brought back to Chelsea by Conte in 2016 for around £34 million, and was arguably one of the most important players in the Blues’ successful bid for last season’s Premier League title.