Real Madrid Reportedly See Mauro Icardi as Alternative to Eden Hazard

Real Madrid reportedly view Inter Milan captain Mauro Icardi as a possible alternative to Chelsea's Eden Hazard. 

The Chelsea forward is president Florentino Perez's top target, but Los Blancos could move for Icardi if they are unable to land the Belgium international, according to Sport.

Real Madrid are keen to strengthen in the winter transfer window and want to bring in a player who can provide goals, per the report.

The Spanish giants have gone four games in all competitions without finding the back of the net. They have managed just seven goals in eight La Liga games, only Atletico Madrid, Real Valladolid and Real Betis have scored less.

Opta noted how poor a run they are on:

Their current streak has piled pressure on manager Julen Lopetegui, who only replaced Zinedine Zidane at the helm in June. He could lose his job if Real Madrid suffer a bad result to Barcelona in the Clasico, per Marco Ruiz at AS.

The club lost Cristiano Ronaldo in the summer and did not bring in a big-name replacement for the forward who scored 25 La Liga goals last season.

That could change in January particularly if Real Madrid are still misfiring in front of goal. Hazard has said it would be a dream to play for the Spanish giants:

Hazard is waiting to hear from Real Madrid with regard to his future. If he has not received an "assurance" by the New Year he will begin contract renewal talks with Chelsea, according to Matt Law at the Telegraph.

Meanwhile, Icardi is in no rush to renew his current deal with Inter Milan, according to his wife and agent Wanda. 

She told Tiki Taka (h/t Goal's Chris Burton): "He still has three years on his contract with Inter, there’s no renewal theme. I’m very happy, I’ve always been very calm. It’s you who have anxiety."

Icardi's current deal includes a release clause of €110 million (£96 million) which is valid for foreign clubs in the first two weeks of July, per Burton.

The Argentinian has been prolific since signing for the Nerazzurri from Sampdoria in 2013:

Given the kind of service he could expect at Real Madrid, Icardi could be expected to score plenty of goals for Los Blancos and prove a worthy investment.