Real Madrid are shopping at the outlet store
Courtois signed for Real Madrid with a year left on his Chelsea contract. The same happened with Hazard, also with a year left on his contract at the same club, and once again with Camavinga, who arrived from Stade Rennes. Three cases that have a not too distant precedent: Toni Kroos arrived from Bayern a year away from completing his contract in Munich. The Kroos operation turned out to be so effective that it was perhaps the first in this new line of investment, Alaba joining up in the summer when his contract in Bavaria was up. The fans now expect the same to happen next June with Kylian Mbappé and there is already talk of others, the likes of Pogba, Rudiger…
Madrid’s move away from Galáctico signings
Gone are the days when Florentino Pérez signed Galácticos in transactions where the player’s price did not concern him. Each signing increased the club's global prestige and resulted in a favourable reaction in terms of other business contracts. But the price inflation that has come from oil-rich and state-owned clubs has pushed valuations beyond what any reasonable exploitation of the football industry can fulfil. PSG's 222 million euros for Neymar (doubling any previous record) marked a before-and-after milestone. Barça's immediate response to pay crazy amounts for Dembelé and Coutinho completed the bar raising to maddening levels.
The pull of Los Blancos
So the party line now is to take note of the contract end date of players they are interested in and target them. They still cost money, because of the year left in the contract or because if he is free then he will demand a signing-on fee or boost to his salary, but these are relatively affordable amounts. This strategy isn’t as flashy as the ‘a Galáctico every year’ strapline, but it is the only feasible one and it is preferred because today's players were just kids when Los Blancos won the 'Best Club of the 20th Century' award, teenagers during 'Los Galacticos', and just turning professional for Cristiano Ronaldo's Champions League. They have grown up fascinated by the legend of the Spanish club and are excited about signing for the thirteen-time European champions.