Real Madrid want to make four signings in summer: who will they sign? Bellingham negotiations at final stages

Brahim and Fran García will be the first signings for Real Madrid for the 2023-24 season, but they are not the only ones. The intention of the club, naturally, is that no big decisions are to be made until the season is done and dusted. But despite having big games on the horizon - the Copa del Rey final against Osasuna and Manchester City soon after - this does not prevent reinforcements being assessed that the squad needs for the coming season. Jude Bellingham (19-years-old) is the big target, but Gabri Veiga, Kane, Vlahovic and Reece James also appear on the list at the Bernabéu offices.

The cornerstones on which Madrid’s planning in 2024 will revolve are still Haaland and Mbappé, but the toothache of 2023 will undoubtedly be the negotiation for Bellingham. The Dortmund star is the main target for the summer, a situation that has not changed despite the as-yet-unofficial continuation of Modric and Kroos, whose contracts expire on June 30 but whose futures are penciled in until 2024. The Englishman is the player chosen by Madrid and it is something mutual: as AS has reported, the midfielder’s “yes” is a reality, and negotiations can and will happen soon enough. But the situation for Bellingham is not so cut and dry, as the asking price from Dortmund is well over €100 million.

Despite this, news emerged today from transfer guru and ferocious Tweeter, Fabrizio Romano, that the Spanish club are “close to complete [a] deal to sign Jude Bellingham, confirmed. Negotiations are progressing to the final stages.”

Real Madrid’s midfield targets

Madrid want two midfielders, and that’s where Gabri Veiga enters the scene, the other big name on the market. At 20-years-old, Celta’s star has shone this season and it is all but confirmed that he will leave his current club. Real Madrid are interested, as are Liverpool, Manchester United, City, Bayern and Barça, as AS has said before. His release clause is €40 million meaning that three Veigas cost around one Bellingham: an easier deal in every aspect.

In attack, with Endrick landing in 2024, the same summer in which the signings of Haaland and/or Mbappé will be attacked again, Madrid are in need of a bridge to cover Benzema and Álvaro Rodríguez, who needs time to grow in the first team naturally and not by necessity. Ancelotti himself recognised this in the preview of the match against Real Sociedad: “The project should include signing a nine, because Karim is of a certain age”. If Madrid do decide to be aggressive with this necessity for goals, they will target either Harry Kane (29) or Dusan Vlahovic (23).

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The Serbian was close to leaving Juventus for the Premier League in the winter in exchange for €100-120 million, and now his name has landed on the tables of the Bernabéu offices. The same price would have to be paid to get Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane, whose contract runs until 2024, meaning it would be now or never for the Spurs captain if he decides to force an exit like he tried to do with City last season. Of course, his fit with Benzema, given their similar characteristics and age profile, would potentially make things more complicated.

Real Madrid want competition for Dani Carvajal

Reece James (23) is the favourite candidate of the Real Madrid coaching staff to strengthen the competition with Carvajal and Lucas Vázquez. But it will not be an easy addition, since Chelsea are not a good client with whom to sit down and negotiate. And even less so if the footballer in question has a contract until 2028 with a renewal signed just a few months ago (September 2022). However, the hurricane caused by the arrival of Todd Boehly, with an expense of more than €600 million in search of a miraculous, instantaneous reconstruction, changes the context.

Neither Enzo Fernández (€120 M), Fofana (€80m), Mudryk (€70m), Cucurella (€65m) or Sterling (€56m) have covered the crisis, but they have made a hole in the accounts which forces them to sell assets to balance the books: this is precisely where where Madrid could press if they decide to step on the accelerator for Reece James. Whatever happens, Madrid are in for a huge squad shift for next season.