Real Madrid vying with Arsenal to sign €80m Spanish defender

Real Madrid vying with Arsenal to sign €80m Spanish defender Real Madrid have already finalised the signings of three defenders (Ibrahima Konate, Denzel Dumfries and Marc Cucurella), but there could be more to come. The club’s sporting department are still identifying targets, and one of those is Sporting CP’s Ivan Fresneda. Fresneda, who left Real Valladolid to join Sporting in 2023, had a difficult first couple of seasons in Portugal, but he’s now started to make his mark. He’s considered to be a key player as a result of the strong performances he has shown, and this has also alerted the attention of some of Europe’s biggest clubs. Real Madrid are one of them, with A Bola (via CaughtOffside ) reporting that Fresneda is a player that is on their radar. However, the 21-year-old is also wanted by Arsenal, who are in a much better position to move for him this summer. Dumfries arrival all-but rules out 2026 deal for Fresneda Image via Telefonica Given that Real Madrid have already signed a right-back in Dumfries , it would be very unlikely that they try for Fresneda this summer – especially considering that Sporting do not intend to listen to offers for the Spain youth international, whose release clause in Lisbon is valued at €80m. However, it is arguably good news that Sporting have no plans to sell now. Arsenal are unlikely to be willing to spend €80m on a player that has yet to fully establish himself at the top level of European football, meaning that he should stay in Portugal for at least one more season. That allows Real Madrid more chances to sign him in the summer, which could be the case when Dumfries, who is 30, ends up needing to be replaced. It’ll be interesting to see whether Real Madrid continue to keep tabs on Fresneda, but for now at least, it would be a major surprise if they tried to sign him now.