Real Madrid News
La Liga club president admits interest in Real Madrid defender
Real Madrid possess ample talent within their ranks, but not every player is privileged with regular game time, as a few fringe assets currently residing at the club do not enter Carlo Ancelotti’s plans.
One of the alienated players is Alvaro Odriozola, who understands his game time is set to be incredibly limited in the ongoing season and thus has been working to reunite with his former club, Real Sociedad.
Real Sociedad president drops major hint
With Odriozola already keen on making the jump to La Real, Aperribay, the club president, Jokin Aperribay, addressed the rumours related to a potential comeback for their academy graduate.
While speaking at the unveiling ceremony of Kieran Tierney, he was asked about Sociedad’s stance regarding Odriozola, to which he replied (h/t Mundo Deportivo):
“La Real are interested in Odriozola, a home-grown player I’ve always known.”
Aperribay was asked if his club is going to open talks with Real Madrid, with the president stating: “Are we going to talk to Madrid? We’ll see. We took the summer one step at a time.”
Odrioziola, having already agreed personal terms with the Basque side, simply awaits a formal negotiation between Real Sociedad and Real Madrid before the window slams shut.
Odriozola could see out his contract
The 27-year-old is aware that staying in the Spanish capital would lead him to warm the bench for the majority of the season, and as La Real has not yet responded, he may be obliged to look into other options.
Either he may be tempted to explore an avenue to Saudi Arabia or simply see out the final year of his contract until June 30, 2024, at which point he will be released.
Jorge Cestero has been called up for Real Madrid’s second league game of the season and starts on the bench on the night.
The player’s inclusion on Jose Mourinho’s squad, however, does not ensure his future at the club for it has been rumoured for a while now that he is looking for an exit.
Options from Ligue 1 were open, but Italy emerged as an option for the Real Madrid academy graduate in recent days as well. On his part, Cestero himself is prioritising a departure as he does not see much scope to flourish at Real Madrid at this point.
An enquiry arrives
As confirmed by Guillermo Rai in a recent report, Atalanta have stepped forward and submitted an enquiry to Real Madrid about the situation of the youngster.
Nothing is advanced at this stage, and the contacts between the clubs are limited to the level of an enquiry regarding the player who has been actively seeking a departure.
In all likelihood, Atalanta were the ‘Italian party’ said to be interested in Cestero earlier this week and it remains to be seen if their stance develops into any concrete offer. After all, the road from interest to an offer is long and uncertain.
Jose Mourinho, for his part, is impressed by the youngster and has been keeping a close eye on him from pre-season. He has kept the player close to the first-team dynamics and it remains to be seen how he accepts the player’s exit.
Fulham remains an option
Cestero continues to weigh up all his options this summer and is not ruling out any proposal as matters stand. Beyond the offers from Italy and France, he has also attracted interest from England.
Fulham, in particular, are keen on signing the young Castilla graduate, especially given how Alvaro Arbeloa has taken charge as their manager and knows the Real Madrid talents well.
So far this summer, Gonzalo Garcia and Cesar Palacios have already left Real Madrid to join their former manager at Fulham and have both become pivotal in the team’s dynamics already,
That, needless to say, could serve as inspiration for Cestero who is also looking for prominent minutes and a chance to further his development. It remains to be seen which of the several options on his table he opts to pick, for there is not long left on the transfer market.
