The world saw what Alphonso Davies did in August 2020. First, he turned Lionel Messi. Then, he pushed the ball around a sprawling Arturo Vidal. Next was Nelson Semedo, then Gerard Pique and Clement Lenglet. The whole thing was finished with an incisive layoff to Joshua Kimmich, who obligingly poked home from six yards out. All said, Davies had taken out almost half of the Barcelona team to set up the killer fifth goal in Bayern Munich's 8-2 Champions League quarter-final romp.
That was nearly four years ago, and it has been widely assumed that, since then, Davies has remained at that level. After all, how could a footballer so good, so young, and so audacious do that to a Barcelona side now not be one of the best in the world? He had broken the internet, surely the world must now be his.
Things haven't been so simple. Davies has, indeed, enjoyed his moments, and his quality cannot be doubted. But consistency - at least at an elite level - has been elusive. In that light, it is strange that Real Madrid have reportedly been interested in Davies for so long. Talk of a potential transfer has only intensified recently, Los Blancos now eager to sign the Canadian full-back, even reaching a verbal agreement to bring him to the Santiago Bernabeu either this summer or next. But in a rare turn of events, it would seem a poor idea for a club that has thrived in the transfer market in the last three years.
Davies is a fine footballer and he could yet be an elite one, but he is not the hefty investment that Carlo Ancelotti's side need.