Real Madrid: Igor Gomes agent talks up Bernabéu transfer
Wagner Ribeiro, the 21-year-old's agent, told Fox Sports that he would happily arrange for the €50m-rated attacking midfielder to move to the Bernabéu.
Real Madrid have been keeping tabs on São Paulo attacking midfielder Igor Gomes, who has been compared to former Bernabéu player Kaká in his native Brazil. The 21-year-old has been under the eye of Real's chief scout Juni Calafat and although there is interest from other clubs in LaLiga and beyond, including Barcelona, Sevilla and Ajax, the player's agent Wagner Ribeiro has said he would like his client to move to Madrid.
"I've been working with Igor since he was 12 years old," Ribeiro told Fox Sports. "He is on the radar of all the big clubs in Europe. He is a starter at São Paulo and he is a different sort of player. He has the kind of style they appreciate in Europe: he scores goals, starts moves, makes assists... he is a complete player. There has been talk that Madrid want him but I said it wasn't the right time to talk about that. But I do have the dream of one day taking him to the Bernabéu. I like Real Madrid as a club. If the opportunity arises, I would do it with pleasure."
São Paulo "almost obliged" to sell Gomes
Ribeiro and Real president Florentino Pérez enjoy a good working relationship and Ribeiro was involved when Madrid were looking into signing Neymar, when he was the PSG star's representative.
Gomes is under contract at São Paulo until 2023 and has a minimum release clause of €50m. The Brazilian side are aware it will be difficult to retain the 21-year-old in the long term due to the amount of interest in the player. "I think it will be difficult to keep him for a long time because of his age and his quality," said São Paulo coach Fernando Diniz recently. "Clubs here have to sell to make ends meet. São Paulo is no different in that respect than any other club. To a certain extent, we are almost obliged to sell him."