Real Madrid summer signing came close to joining Valencia twice in his career – report

Real Madrid summer signing came close to joining Valencia twice in his career – report Real Madrid are set to take on Valencia later today, barely rested after their win in Greece over AEK Athens. There is, in that sense, a good chance the manager will consider rotations across the field to ensure the well-being of players who played a massive shift midweek. If the substitutes are to earn more prominence on the night as starters, Carlos Espi stands out as a major candidate to benefit from the arrangement, and it is interesting to follow how the player was actually even close to joining Valencia twice in his career. A first attempt in 2022 As reported by AS in a recent update, Espi was offered to the Mestalla-based club twice throughout the course of his youth trajectory, but the move never unfolded. Espi could have been a Valencia player. (Photo by Christof Koepsel/Getty Images) The Spanish striker first joined UD Alzira from UE Tavernes and began showing off his innate ability to score goals. They had complete faith in the player and knew he had a massive future ahead. When he began scoring goals at a phenomenal rate, Alzira and Valencia hosted a friendly as affiliated clubs to see various youth players in action. Espi was also on display in that game in 2022, but matters did not go well, and Valencia did not see him favorably. The second chance Soon, as Espi began to keep up his goalscoring rate consistently, Levante made a move for the player, and Rafa Asensio, Alzira’s sporting director, proceeded with the negotiations. Levante capitalised on Valencia’s rejection. (Photo by Alex Caparros/Getty Images) They demanded that they retain a percentage of a future transfer on Espi – something Levante initially refused to accept. As they vacillated, Valencia appeared on the scene again as a suitor. The young striker even travelled to Paterna to try again, but once again Valencia did not see the player to be fit for their plans. Levante eventually accepted Alzira’s terms and handed them a 10% return on any future sale – something that rewarded them €2.5 million from his move to Real Madrid this past summer. Tonight, he could thus be action for the first time at the Mestalla, a stadium which could have been his home ground had matters proceeded a little differently.