Real Madrid finalise key piece of business as 22-year-old pens six-year contract

Real Madrid have been busy in the transfer market this summer, with Dean Huijsen, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Franco Mastantuono all joining since the start of June. And the club has now moved to close an important piece of business involving one of their existing players.

The 2024-25 season was a disappointing one for Real Madrid, to say the least. They fell short to Barcelona in La Liga and the Copa del Rey, while they were knocked out of the Champions League in emphatic fashion by Arsenal. But it was not all bad, with some rays of light having shone through.

And one of those was Raul Asencio, who broke into the first team in November following Eder Militao’s season-ending knee injury. The 22-year-old cemented himself as a regular starter throughout the remainder of the campaign, and going forward, he is expected to be an important player for Xabi Alonso, Real Madrid’s new head coach.

And this has been amplified by the fact that Asencio, who could be at risk of a possible prison sentence, has now penned a new six-year Real Madrid contract, as confirmed by The Athletic. And as part of the agreement, his release clause will increase to €1bn – the same as the likes of Kylian Mbappe and Vinicius Junior.

At this stage, it is unclear whether Asencio will retain his status as a regular starter for next season. The arrival of Huijsen means that Real Madrid have those two, as well as Antonio Rudiger, Eder Militao and David Alaba as natural central defensive options, and Aurelien Tchouameni can also play there.

Much will depend on whether Xabi Alonso plays with two or three central defenders. He used three at Bayer Leverkusen, but in order to fully utilise the midfield talent that Real Madrid have, he may opt for a 4-4-2 or 4-3-3 system.