News Focus
- Florentino Perez has pledged major signings if he wins Sunday’s presidential election against Enrique Riquelme
- Jose Mourinho is expected to replace Alvaro Arbeloa as manager at the Bernabeu
- Three transfer targets have emerged: a returning academy graduate, an Italian centre-back, and a Portuguese midfielder
- The new coach faces a tactical puzzle integrating Vinicius Junior and Kylian Mbappe
Real Madrid are preparing for major changes at the Bernabeu this summer. Club president Florentino Perez has promised to bring top players to the team if he wins the election next Sunday. He told supporters that new stars will arrive at the club as they have done in the past.
Perez is running against Enrique Riquelme for the presidency. Most observers expect Perez to keep his position. If he stays in charge, Jose Mourinho will likely become the new manager. Sources say Mourinho has already signed a contract to take over from Alvaro Arbeloa.
According to Spanish radio station Cadena Cope, Perez wants to sign three players. The first is Victor Munoz, who left the club last year to join Osasuna. Real Madrid can buy him back for €8 million.
The club also want a new centre-back. They are interested in Alessandro Bastoni from Inter Milan. Barcelona wanted to sign Bastoni too, but they stopped talks because their coach Hansi Flick was not sure if the player would fit his plans.
For the middle of the pitch, Real Madrid are looking at Joao Neves from Paris Saint-Germain. The team had wanted Vitinha from the same club before, but now they like Neves instead.
Mourinho will have a big problem to solve in attack. Vinicius Junior and Kylian Mbappe have not played well together for two seasons. No manager has found a way to use both players in the same team. This will be Mourinho’s most important job when he starts work.