Real Madrid star who shone last season 'to run down contract and leave for free'

One of Real Madrid's star performers of the 2023/24 season, when they won La Liga and the UEFA Champions League, is reportedly set to leave the club for nothing.

Carlo Ancelotti's side claimed league and European glory last term as they romped home in the domestic title race before defeating Borussia Dortmund 2-0 in the Champions League final at Wembley.

Their latest campaign started positively as they won a record sixth UEFA Super Cup thanks to a 2-0 victory over Atalanta , in which debutant Kylian Mbappe scored his first goal for the club.

They followed that up with a 1-1 draw with Real Mallorca to begin their La Liga title defense, with a home game against Real Valladolid next up.

MORE: All the latest soccer news | Barcelona news | Real Madrid news

One of their top performers last term has now reportedly decided that 2024/25 will be his last season at the Santiago Bernabeu before he leaves on a free transfer.

Goalkeeper Andriy Lunin played 31 times across all competitions in 2023/24 while regular No. 1 Thibaut Courtois recovered from a serious knee injury. The Belgian was back in time for the closing weeks of the campaign and played in the Champions League final, with Lunin an unused substitute.

The Ukraine international, who played at Euro 2024, is aware that his role is that of back-up at the club and appears to have decided he wants more regular football in future. Sport claimed on August 21 that Lunin will see out his contract, which runs until the end of this season, before leaving Madrid on a free transfer.

Madrid are said to have wanted to sell Lunin in this transfer window, but it appears there have been no suitors willing to match their asking price of €20-25 million ($22-28 million).