With the end of the season, Real Madrid had clear priorities for the Club World Cup. Signings had to be made for the defense, with the objectives of acquiring a center back, a right back, and a left back.
The first two were completed without any problems, with Dean Huijsen and Trent Alexander-Arnold joining the club. However, although the reinforcement for the left side of the defense had been chosen, he will not be able to arrive in time for the World Cup. The signing of Álvaro Carreras has been postponed. Álvaro Carreras, the man chosen to fix the left side
Throughout the season, one of Real Madrid’s most obvious weaknesses has been at left-back. Carlo Ancelotti’s first-choice player was Ferland Mendy, but constant injuries kept him out of the team for a considerable number of games. Furthermore, when he did play, his performance was well below expectations, looking weak at the back and contributing little in attack.
His natural replacement was Fran García, in whom the Italian coach had no confidence. The Spanish full-back was relegated on multiple occasions by a converted Camavinga. Like his teammate, his performance on the wing left much to be desired. Both will now depend largely on the decisions made by Xabi Alonso, but the departure of either player cannot be ruled out.
In the search for a vital reinforcement for the left wing, the chosen one was an old acquaintance, Álvaro Carreras. The player, who arrived at Real Madrid’s youth academy from Deportivo, has had a great season at Benfica in Portugal, convincing the club’s management that he was the player needed to solve the problem in the World Cup and throughout the coming season.
Some loose ends that were not tied up in time
Negotiations with Benfica have not been easy. The Portuguese club insisted from the outset on the €50 million release clause. This was an amount that Real Madrid was not willing to pay. The Spanish club began the bidding with an offer of $35 million, which they later raised to $40 million. However, the Portuguese team did not want to sell for less than $48 million to compensate for losing the player ahead of the Club World Cup, which they will also be competing in.
Benfica and Real Madrid pushed the negotiations to the limit and finally, with no agreement reached, the Ferrol-born full-back traveled with the Portuguese team on Sunday to the United States and will finally play in the FIFA tournament with his current club, with Real Madrid postponing his signing until the traditional transfer window, which will begin on July 1.
Alternative to Carreras
Although Real Madrid has not given up on signing him, only postponing it, speculation about a change of course or that, given the level detected by Xabi Alonso, they are thinking of signing two full-backs is inevitable. In this regard, the name that is being mentioned most is that of Alejandro Grimaldo. The player has been full of praise for Xabi Alonso since leaving Bayer Leverkusen. He knows the coach very well and wants to return to LaLiga, so he would be a reliable signing. Another player who was very popular with the Whites for the full-back position was the young Bournemouth player Milos Kerkez, but the Hungarian is reportedly close to sealing his move to another Premier League team, Liverpool.