Real Madrid president Florentino Perez is on the verge of securing his third marquee transfer in three straight years, as Liverpool superstar right back Trent Alexander-Arnold is expected to join the Merengues for free this summer.
Last year, Real Madrid signed PSG superstar attacker Kylian Mbappe for free – an even bigger long-term dream target of Florentino’s. And the year before, he signed Jude Bellingham from Dortmund for 100 million euros.
Even though Alexander-Arnold alone would be a successful transfer window for Real Madrid, there are many fans who believe the club needs to make more defensive signings, and while TAA would be a much-needed right back to help Dani Carvajal, he is more of an attacking-minded fullback.
Transfer rumors swirl around Bournemouth breakout star and Spanish international Dean Huijsen, and now the big topic after Alexander-Arnold will be Huijsen and the center back situation.
According to a report from Fabrizio Romano, via Madrid Xtra, Real Madrid do indeed like Huijsen and he is a possible signing for them. However, because Raul Asencio has emerged as a great young center back in his own right, Real Madrid are still deciding if they want to sign a center back at all.
Per Fab, Real Madrid will make their final decision on a center back soon. It appears the 19-year-old is gaining more momentum, and perhaps that could play into the club’s decision.
Historically, Real Madrid have been slow to sign center backs. They have been trusting homegrown players like Raul Asencio and Joan Martinez, who suffered a torn ACL before his 2024/25 season could get started.
When they have made signings, they have resorted to free agent veterans like David Alaba and Antonio Rudiger, as opposed to spending 50 million pounds on breakout stars like Huijsen.
It could all depend on what chief scout Juni Calafat thinks. His opinion on young players is highly respected, so if he thinks Huijsen is worth the money, Real Madrid may not hesitate to add some center back depth that, in the eyes of many fans, is still very much needed.
Joe Soriano covers West Ham for Green Street Hammers and writes about Real Madrid for The Real Champs. He has extensive experience covering world football since 2014. Joe is an editor for The Trivela Effect, where he covers the biggest clubs in European football. He has watched professional sports regularly since 2002 and can be found playing the same sports he covers with his friends.