Real Madrid News
Real Betis interested in signing €10 million-rated Real Madrid target in January
According to journalist Sergio Santos, Real Betis have set their sights on a move for Rayo Vallecano left-back Fran Garcia, who also has admirers at his former club Real Madrid.
The left-back came through the youth ranks at Real Madrid and made one solitary senior appearance before leaving for greener pastures in 2020. After spending a year on loan at Rayo Vallecano, he made the transfer permanent and has thrived.
Garcia has racked up 98 appearances for Vallecano, bagging three goals and eight assists. He has made a great impression over the past eighteen months in La Liga.
So much so that, Real Madrid are considering re-signing him in the summer of 2023. Indeed, it has been reported that manager Carlo Ancelotti and several officials at the club admire the 23-year-old left-back and want him back at the Bernabeu next summer.
However, they are now set to face competition from Real Betis, who are also interested in signing Garcia this month itself.
The Verdiblancos have identified the defender as a target if Alex Moreno leaves, amidst interest from Aston Villa. Betis see Garcia’s €10 million release clause as feasible financially but the operation will be difficult to pull off.
For starters, Garcia is an integral part of Andoni Iraola’s plans at Rayo Vallecano and they will be reluctant to let him leave midway through the campaign.
On top of that, Real Madrid still own 50% of the 23-year-old’s rights and have the first refusal on him, meaning Real Betis will also have to speak to Los Blancos if they wish to press ahead with Garcia’s signing.
That is where problems could arise as Real Madrid could be reluctant to see Garcia join a different club this month when they plan to sign him in the summer. So, it will be a complex operation for Real Betis, but they are ready to make efforts to acquire his services.
If the move does not go through, Los Blancos can sign him for €5 million in the summer – half of his release clause amount – as they own 50% of his rights.
It hasn’t been a good week for Real Madrid, who look all set to relinquish their Spanish league title to arch-rivals Barcelona come the end of the season, following a narrow defeat to the Blaugrana at the weekend.
However, as Real Madrid enter the international break, there is some positive news for Carlo Ancelotti and his men.
As reported by Toni Juanmarti, Barcelona look set to miss out on their two star players in Ousmane Dembele and Pedri due to injury, ahead of the upcoming second-leg semifinal tie against Real Madrid, in Copa Del Rey.
Real Madrid are heading into this game with a 1-0 defeat in the first-leg, meaning they must beat Barça with a two-goal margin in order to book a place in the final. The absence of both Pedri and Dembele, to that end, could be a major boost for Ancelotti.
Pedri, who was expected to return to full fitness for the second leg, has suffered a relapse. It has set his return back to three or four weeks late, meaning the youngster will not return until the April 23 tie against Atletico Madrid.
The situation is not much different for Ousmane Dembele. The explosive attacker is recovering slower than expected and though he was tipped to return in the league game against Real Madrid this month, he remains a major doubt for this Copa Del Rey tie.
However, Barcelona did register a narrow victory over Los Blancos even without these two individuals, so the task is definitely cut out for Ancelotti and his men as they look to exact revenge against the Catalans in Copa Del Rey next month.
