Real Madrid News
Benfica will demand €120 million for Real Madrid, Liverpool target, no room for negotiations
Enzo Fernandez has suddenly become a much-wanted commodity in the transfer market following his rise in prominence over the past five months or so.
Having joined SL Benfica from River Plate in the summer, the 21-year-old has quickly become an integral part of the team in Portugal. Building on that, the midfielder enjoyed a brilliant run at the FIFA World Cup 2022, helping Argentina win the trophy.
Fernandez even won the Best Young Player Award at the World Cup. His rise in stature has not gone unnoticed, with Real Madrid and Liverpool competing to sign the Benfica midfielder, although both clubs are also competing for Jude Bellingham of Borussia Dortmund.
And, according to AS, Benfica have made it clear that any club wanting to sign Enzo Fernandez will have to pay his full release clause amount of €120 million, and that there is no room for negotiations when it comes to the transfer fee.
Considering that Benfica only shelled out a sum of €18 million to sign the 21-year-old from River Plate, the Portuguese giants stand to make a huge profit if either of Real Madrid or Liverpool or a different team altogether decide to splash €120 million for him.
They have a history of making big sales having sold Joao Felix to Atletico Madrid for a sum of around €120 million while most recently they offloaded Darwin Nunez to Liverpool for €100 million (including add-ons).
There had been reports that Liverpool had already reached a pre-agreement to sign Fernandez, but those claims have recently been dismissed.
But with Real Madrid now said to be in pole position for Bellingham, it is unlikely that they might go after Fernandez as well. However, if the England international does not arrive, one can expect the Merengues to after the Argentine ace with great intent.
Real Madrid News
Real Madrid midfielder trained away from the group last week, but has no injury – report
With the international break underway, several Real Madrid players have been called up for national team assignments. The stars who have not travelled for international duty have continued to work at the club’s Valdebebas training facility to prepare for the restart.
Toni Kroos is one such player who has remained in Madrid, having retired from international football back in 2021.
However, there had been concerns growing around the 33-year-old’s physical condition as he regularly did indoor work last week and was not spotted in group training with his teammates.
Now, Sergio Quirante has come up with an update on Kroos’ situation, stating that even though the midfielder largely did individual work inside the facilities over the last week, he is fine and has no injuries.
Taking advantage of the international break, the former Bayern Munich superstar is understood to have gone through an individual program to prepare for the final, decisive stretch of the 2022/23 season.
Kroos not being injured comes as a big positive for Real Madrid, ahead of important games against Real Valladolid and Barcelona within the first five days of April.
The rest of the Real Madrid midfield contingent – Luka Modric, Eduardo Camavinga, Aurelien Tchouameni, Federico Valverde, and Dani Ceballos – are all away on international duties and could return with some fatigue from the travel.
So, it is important that Kroos is fully fit and ready to go as Real Madrid look to cut down the gap to the top of the table in La Liga and also make it to the finals of the Copa del Rey by overturning a first-leg deficit against Barcelona in the semi-finals.
Kroos has played 37 matches this season, chipping in with two goals and five assists in the process. With his contract expiring at the end of the season, it is still unclear whether he will renew or hang up his boots.
