Atletico Madrid News
Atletico Madrid trying to land Premier League defender in January instead of summer
This past weekend, reports emerged confirming that Atletico Madrid are closing in on the capture of Caglar Soyuncu from Leicester City. The Turkish international is out of contract in the summer and Los Rojiblancos are inching towards finalising a Bosman move.
However, as per the latest reports from MARCA, Atletico Madrid will try and negotiate with Leicester City to sign the defender in the upcoming January transfer window itself.
Soyuncu has been with Leicester City since the summer of 2018 when he arrived from SC Freiburg. The 26-year-old has featured in 125 matches for the Premier League club but has fallen out of favour this season and is set to be on his way out.
Atletico Madrid are on the lookout for defensive reinforcements as they have not been consistent enough at the back.
Jose Maria Gimenez and Stefan Savic have struggled with fitness problems while Felipe and Mario Hermoso have been major liabilities. The Rojiblancos are open to offloading the latter two and will listen to offers for them in January.
And they hope to add Soyuncu to the squad in the winter itself rather than waiting until the end of the season to incorporate his signing.
Atletico Madrid worked out a similar deal for Reinildo Mandava in January earlier this year and wish to repeat that tactic with the Turkish international as well.
The report, however, mentions that it will be complicated because he still has six months left on his contract. On top of that, any move for Soyuncu in January could only take place if Felipe leaves the Civitas Metropolitano.
So, unless there is an exit in the defensive department, it is unlikely that the Leicester City centre-half could arrive at Atletico Madrid next month.
Atletico Madrid News
Atletico Madrid to rival Inter, AC Milan and Roma for 23-year-old centre-forward
Atletico Madrid are set to enter the market for another striker in the summer transfer window even though they signed Memphis Depay in January from Barcelona.
And according to Italian journalist Giacomo Iacobellis, Atletico Madrid are interested in signing 23-year-old striker Mateo Retegui, who is also on the radars of AC Milan, Inter and AS Roma.
Retegui, born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, also has Italian citizenship and has recently been called up by Roberto Mancini to the national team squad for the upcoming UEFA Euro 2024 qualifiers.
The 23-year-old striker is currently plying his trade for Argentine outfit Tigre, on loan from Boca Juniors, having joined in February last year. He has made a solid impression so far in his time with his temporary club and has six goals in seven league appearances this season so far.
It has alerted Atletico Madrid, who are on the lookout for a new centre-forward. Depay was brought in earlier this year to replace Joao Felix, who left on loan and is likely to be sold permanently to Chelsea in the summer.
Having lost Matheus Cunha as well during the winter, Diego Simeone’s side do not have great depth up top, especially with Alvaro Morata not performing consistently. Hence, a new centre-forward could arrive at the Civitas Metropolitano, with Retegui emerging as an option.
Retegui’s loan deal runs until the end of this year, with Tigre having the option to make the transfer permanent. His contract with Boca Juniors expires at the end of December 2024.
Apart from Atletico, Italian clubs like AS Roma, AC Milan and Inter Milan are also keen on the 23-year-old and it remains to be seen if Retegui moves to Europe come summer.
