It has been a long time since a player came out of the Real Madrid academy and became a starter for the senior team. At least not directly. For example, Dani Carvajal had to prove himself elsewhere before getting a proper chance at Santiago Bernabeu. Could Chelsea end up signing one of their rising youngsters this summer?
Chelsea might need to sign another striker despite adding Joao Pedro and Liam Delap to their ranks. That is because there is now a lot of uncertainty around the future of Nicolas Jackson, who is being linked with clubs in England and Italy.
On the other hand, it appears that Gonzalo Garcia of Real Madrid has caught the eye of Chelsea. He has been a standout performer at the ongoing Club World Cup, scoring three goals in four appearances.
As reported by SPORT (via ESPN), Chelsea are willing to pay €40 million to sign Gonzalo. But new Real Madrid coach Xabi Alonso wants to keep the youngster, with Endrick likely to move out on loan.
Chelsea ready to bid €40m to sign Real Madrid player
There is no doubt that Gonzalo has impressed at the Club World Cup. But is that enough for Chelsea to go out and spend €40 million to sign him? Could this just be a purple patch of form?
The 21-year-old scored 25 goals in 36 appearances for the Castilla side as well. But then, he had managed to score just five times in his previous 37 games for them. Also, he has never scored in 13 appearances for Spain at the youth international level.
That's a shaky record. We have seen Real Madrid players with far better youth records move for much less in recent times. Nico Paz is a great example, joining Como for a €6 million fee last summer.