Real Madrid News
Confirmed: Real Madrid sign 21-year-old La Liga striker on five year deal
As Gonzalo Garcia nears his big-money move to the Premier League, Real Madrid immediately grew interested in signing a low-cost striker talent to take the Spaniard’s place for next season.
In a matter of hours, the name of Carlos Espi sounded loudly within the club administration, and Real Madrid liked the Levante striker as a promising young option with a high ceiling.
It was expected that contacts would grow over the coming days before a deal could be struck, but what nobody expected was for the deal to be closed, confirmed and announced in a matter of hours.
Espi is a Real Madrid player
In an official announcement late last night, Real Madrid confirmed that they have signed Espi from Levante on a permanent transfer by triggering his release clause.
“Real Madrid C. F. and the Levante U. D. have agreed to the transfer of the player Carlos Espí, who remains linked to our club for the next five seasons, until June 30, 2031,” the official notice read.
They also announced the player’s statistics from his time at Levante to bring his talent into perspective, stating that he has played 66 games for Levante and scored 20 goals.
Real Madrid also included in the announcement that Espi was the best under-23 player in the league last season.
How much did Real Madrid pay?
Espi’s release clause was placed at €25 million, and that is the sum that Real Madrid have shelled out to secure his services.
In a matter of hours, they reached an agreement with him, completed his medicals and paid out the clause, completing all the formalities and announcing the signing.
Espi’s contract with Real Madrid now runs until 2031, and the fact that the club handed him a five-year contract is testament to the fact that they believe in him as part of the long-term project.
The youngster will thus serve as the team’s backup striker next season, playing as Kylian Mbappe’s deputy. What remains in doubt, however, is how his arrival will impact the situation of Endrick who was also vying for the same backup striker void.
Real Madrid News
Jose Mourinho was always clear about getting rid of Real Madrid midfielder this summer – report
Real Madrid’s summer transfer window was largely successful, not only in terms of securing key arrivals but also in terms of letting go of players who had no place in the dynamics.
One player who stood out in the second category was Dani Ceballos as the Spanish midfielder was frozen out of Real Madrid’s starting dynamics for several years before his eventual departure.
In the end, the club simply let the player leave as a free agent by accepting a contract termination as they saw the salary space freed as a win compared to his presence.
Mourinho’s clear stance
As confirmed in a recent report by Diario AS, Real Madrid’s new manager Jose Mourinho has no doubt that he did not count on Ceballos for the ongoing season.
Being the straightforward communicator that he is, the Portuguese manager directly informed Ceballos that he did not count on him in any capacity, speaking out loud about a fact that was known as an open secret for a long time.
Having clarity that his situation at the club was not going to change, Ceballos pressed to leave and eventually had his way as the club allowed him to walk out of the front door with no transfer fee.
Times were tense
The Spanish outlet also add that the decision to let the player leave with a contract termination was not easy for Real Madrid to accept, especially given that it is a last resort.
In the negotiations between Ceballos and the Real Madrid hierarchy, there were some moments filled with tension and disagreements.
In fact, there was even an initial exit agreement that was reached which was cancelled in the hope of a better outcome.
Eventually, however, both parties reached a fitting resolution and Real Madrid enabled the player’s departure without any hurdles and Ceballos went on to join Real Betis.
Even that move required the player to take a massive cut on his salary, but the saga worked out well for both clubs as the player. From Real Madrid’s perspective, the space created on the team’s roster was worth its weight in gold.
