A number of players are set for a summer departure from Real Madrid, where the chief item on the to-do list is securing the signing of Kylian Mbappé.
At Real Madrid, the strengths and weaknesses of Carlo Ancelotti’s squad have been identified and a roadmap for next season set out. Ancelotti himself said so publicly ahead of Madrid’s Copa del Rey clash with Alcoyano on Wednesday, telling reporters: “We’ve made our plans for next term.” It was a comment made almost in passing, but behind it is a blueprint devised by a club working with its sights set not months, but years down the line.
Ahead of 2022/23, Madrid’s transfer to-do list looks like this: seal a deal for Kylian Mbappé, who is out of contract at Paris Saint-Germain in June; take up the best strategic position in the race for Erling Braut Haaland; fill the gaps that will be left by close-season departures; and keep a close eye on the other free agents on the club’s radar.
Mbappé signing Real Madrid's summer priority
One major element of Madrid’s project for the next decade, the revamped Bernabéu, is progressing well. A second cornerstone, Mbappé, is close to being laid. Los Blancos are confident of snaring the Frenchman on an end-of-season free transfer but, with a Champions League last-16 tie against PSG coming up in February and March, they will avoid creating any awkwardness between the two clubs by waiting until after then to complete a move for the player.
In an interview with the Italian newspaper Gazzetta dello Sport, the well-known football agent Giovanni Branchini this week claimed Madrid are preparing to offer PSG 50m euros in a bid to sign Mbappé in the January window - but the Spanish club is denying this assertion. The 23-year-old World Cup winner is at the heart of Madrid’s plans for the summer.
Madrid keen to buy Haaland next year, despite player's desire for move in 2022
Managing their pursuit of Haaland is also a high priority for Madrid. As this newspaper has previously reported, the Norwegian has long since chosen the Bernabéu as his preferred destination - but he is keen to leave Borussia Dortmund this year, so it’s now down to the club to reconcile the striker’s impatience for a move with their preference for a deal in 2023.
That said, Madrid are not overly worried about Joan Laporta’s eagerness to link the player with a summer switch to Barcelona, in what appears to be an attempt by the Camp Nou president to reestablish the narrative that Barça are one of the top transfer-market players. Madrid must also settle on a plan of action for negotiations with Mino Raiola and Alf-Inge Haaland, Haaland’s agent and father, respectively; they are both likely to seek a large commission.
Modric the only out-of-contract player expected to get new contract
Of the Real Madrid players who are out of contract at the end of the season, the club is only interested in agreeing an extension with Luka Modric, who is in line to sign a one-year renewal. Marcelo, Isco and Gareth Bale, whose 17m-euro annual wages make him the best-paid player in the squad, are part of Madrid’s plans for next term.
Los Merengues also expect Dani Ceballos and Jesús Vallejo to depart. Ceballos is now in the final 18 months of his Madrid contract, so this summer will be a good time to sell, while Vallejo, a player who has featured for just three minutes this season and has failed to win over Ancelotti, will have to leave whether he likes it or not. The club is preparing to bring in Chelsea’s Antonio Rüdier in Vallejo’s place, and will dip into the academy if a fifth centre-back is needed. Rafa Marín is the chief candidate to make the step-up.
Madrid aiming to snare Rüdiger on free but wages an obstacle
Madrid are confident of signing Rüdiger on a free transfer, but the deal is not without stumbling blocks. Firstly, the Germany international wants an annual salary of 12m euros after tax, the same as David Alaba, who moved to the Bernabéu as a free agent last summer. However, while Madrid had no qualms about giving the Austrian such a salary after letting high-earning centre-back Sergio Ramos leave, they’re less convinced about paying Rüdiger that kind of money, particularly in view of the form shown by Éder Militão.
With Chelsea resigned to losing Rüdiger, PSG are also keeping tabs on the situation, but Madrid are reluctant to offer the 28-year-old more than 10m a year plus bonuses, despite his brother and agent’s reported attempts to whip up a bidding war for the player. Meanwhile, Rüdiger has apparently been doing his research on the pros and cons of joining Madrid, speaking to players currently at the Bernabéu about life in the Spanish capital.
Rüdiger isn’t the only free agent that Madrid are monitoring, albeit the club is following other soon to be out-of-contract targets less closely. One is AC Milan midfielder Franck Kessié, who is also attracting interest from sides such as Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur.
Youth teamers again expected to make up the numbers
When it comes to the role of the club’s youth academy next season, meanwhile, La Fábrica will - barring a major shift in Ancelotti’s approach - again be there to provide players who are there chiefly to top up the Italian’s matchday groups when required.
Last summer, Madrid rebuffed all attempted approaches for Miguel Gutiérrez and Antonio Blanco, as the B-teamers were expected to feature regularly in the senior side, having been given game time by former head coach Zinedine Zidane last season, and impressed. However, Ancelotti has not continued their first-team integration, and indeed neither has been included in what is by no means a youth-heavy squad to face Alcoyano.
Gutiérrez and Blanco’s futures, along with those of Sergio Arribas and Marvin Park, whose first-team progress has also stalled, will be considered in the summer. The club is unwilling to let them leave permanently, but they are likely to have to go out on loan.
A further crop of youngsters is emerging in their wake that Ancelotti can draft into the squad if needed. Not only Marín and winger Peter Federico, but a number of other players that Madrid have a lot of faith in and who are set to be important players for B-team boss Raúl González Blanco next season, such as Marvel and Bruno Iglesias.