De Laurentiis: Fabián for Madrid? "Our doors are always open"
The Napoli president was asked about the interest from Spanish clubs in his side's young midfielder, and appeared open to selling.
The idea of signing Fabián Ruiz is high on Real Madrid's objectives, as we first reported back in June, and the fact that the young player is refusing to have a release clause greater than 100 million euros has increased speculation of a potential move, as did recent words from Napoli's president.
Fabián offers will be heard
The young Spaniard is currently in the process of renewing with the Serie A club, and president Aurelio De Laurentiis has been speaking about the speculation surrounding him player. One of the questions was whether LaLiga's big two had missed the boat on getting his signature.
"Did Real and Barça arrive too late? Well, we found Fabián, and who knows how many more we will find. You should never close the door; our door is always open.
"We can't get too attached. I did it with Koulibaly and didn't sell him for 105 million, but there will come a time when it will be necessary to agree to a deal."
De Laurentiis also heaped praise on the team's current manager, Carlo Ancelotti, stating his confidence in the experienced Italian who he said "for me he can stay ten years." He then returned to the young star.
“Fabián has always been a top player. If I pay 30 million for a player who is a relative unknown, it is because after 15 years in football I know a thing or two.
"However, one thing is to play well for a national team and another is to do it every three days for your club."
In the coming weeks the contract negotiations will hope to be finalised to extend it past an expiry of 2023. It would seem, though, that any release clause will not put off the major clubs in the market, another reason for the door being left open.