Real Madrid News
Real Madrid defender close to joining newly-promoted La Liga club on loan – report
According to journalist Arancha Rodriguez, Real Madrid defender Jesus Vallejo is close to moving to Granada on a season-long loan.
Vallejo, 26, has been with Real Madrid since 2015 but has only been able to make 31 appearances across all competitions. Since joining Madrid, Vallejo has embarked on several loan spells to gain experience.
During the 2016-17 season, the centre-back was shipped to Eintracht Frankfurt in the Bundesliga where he got to play 27 games in all competitions.
In July 2019, he moved to Wolverhampton Wanderers in the Premier League on a season-long loan, but his tenure was cut short in January itself.
Upon returning, he temporarily joined Granada for the rest of the season and his performances were so impressive that the team got him for another year during the 2020-21 season.
Now, it is almost certain that Vallejo’s playing time at Real Madrid will be bare minimum next season.
We have reported before that Vallejo was initially willing to stay and fight for his place next season, but as it turns out, he has decided to consider offers after all.
This is mostly because Carlo Ancelotti has reportedly had a talk with him, explaining to the defender that the best course of action is to move on.
Interestingly enough, despite limited playing time in the last few seasons, Vallejo has no shortage of admirers as it is believed that he has several offers on the table. For what it is worth, however, he has decided to join the familiar faces at Granada.
As things stand, there is a good chance that the 26-year-old’s loan move to the newly-promoted La Liga club could be completed before the end of the day today.
One of the biggest positives for Real Madrid from the last season was the breakthrough of young midfielder Thiago Pitarch.
The 19-year-old La Fabrica prospect had been in the first-team dynamics since pre-season under Xabi Alonso, but finally got his senior debut under Alvaro Arbeloa at the turn of the year.
From that moment on, Pitarch did not look back at all, gaining prominence in the team and even starting important matches ahead of established players like Eduardo Camavinga and Dani Ceballos.
However, things have not gone as per plans for the teenager this season as he has yet to play a single minute of first-team football.
January loan no longer ruled out
As such, Diario AS now reports that Pitarch would consider leaving Real Madrid on loan during the January transfer window if his situation does not improve.
The teenage midfielder suffered an injury in pre-season which kept him sidelined for a few weeks, denying him an opportunity to start the season under Jose Mourinho.
By the time he returned, the Portuguese tactician had already identified his preferred hierarchy in midfield, with the likes of Federico Valverde, Bernardo Silva, Aurelien Tchouameni and Camavinga firmly ahead in the pecking order.
A stark difference from his debut season
In his debut season, Pitarch ended with 16 first-team appearances for Real Madrid with two assists to his name.
In contrast, this term, the academy graduate has been called up to the matchday squad for five games by Mourinho this term, but has yet to play a single minute of football.
Given the situation, he used the international break to jump down to Castilla and play close to 250 minutes across three games, during which he also registered an assist.
The situation is far from ideal for a young talent who needs regular minutes to continue his development and build on his impressive breakthrough campaign.
As such, the possibility of a departure on loan in January could be considered, after Pitarch turned down offers in the summer to stay at Real Madrid.
A lot will depend on how things evolve in the next couple of months, but a temporary exit cannot be ruled out.
