Asensio deal leaves exit doors open for Nacho and Jesé
Champions League rules require teams to have at least eight homegrown in their squads. Asensio's contract renovation now leaves a surplus with Nacho or Jesé possible casualties
Asensio’s contract renovation has opened the possible exit doors for Nacho and Jesé at Real Madrid. Champions League rules state that teams must have at least eight homegrown players in their squads, and with Asensio’s new deal means that Los Blancos now have nine footballers who fill that requirement.
Homegrown requirments
If Asensio convinces Zidane in pre-season of his worth to the club, Los Blancos could look to discard one of Nacho and Jesé, whose exit was blocked before now. Rule 43.02 of Champions League regulations requires that out of the 25 players that sides need to name in their European squad lists, as a minimum, eight places are reserved exclusively for "locally trained players" and no club may have more than four "association trained players" listed on these eight places. “Association trained players” are those who have spent at least three seasons in clubs who are part of the same federation between the ages of 15 and 21.
At the Bernabéu, besides Asensio, Nacho and Jesé, the players that complete the homegrown list are Casilla, Carvajal, Sergio Ramos, Isco, Lucas Vázquez and Morata.
Asensio deal leaves surplus
Since Arbeloa’s departure from the club, Real Madrid have been unable to let go any of the players that form part of the list due to having only the minimum amount of eight footballers in their squad. However, since Asensio’s renovation, the situation has opened up.
Nacho has an offer from Roma of €12 million on the table, according to Italian media outlets. In the case of Jesé on the other hand, Morata’s return has limited his options and sides such as Espanyol and Bayer Leverkusen are circling.