Xabi Alonso has been a busy man since his arrival as Real Madrid boss, and he’s aiming to mould a team which he believes can wrestle the La Liga title back from Barcelona.
Los Blancos have already signed wing-back Trent Alexander-Arnold from Liverpool and central defender Dean Huijsen from Bournemouth, while left-back Alvaro Carreras has flown in from Benfica. On the way through the exit door, Luka Modric and Lucas Vazquez have departed, but there’s another big-name star who still seems to be undecided.
Brazil star Vinicius Junior has been unsettled for a while now and was the subject of an approach from the Saudi Pro League 12 months ago. He didn’t go, but having spent the whole of his senior professional career at the Santiago Bernabeu, he may be ready for a change. There is no doubt about the 25-year-old’s ability, as he has scored 61 goals in 206 games for Los Blancos and earned 41 caps for the Selecao, but last season wasn’t his best.
Vinicius has been at the centre of some unseemly race rows in La Liga and has been genuinely and understandably upset at times, and he’s also had disciplinary issues, which have been an unnecessary distraction. Talks of a move to the Middle East habe cooled, but with just two years left on his contract, there is a time element to this for the club, who will, if they have to lose their player, want to gain maximum value.
According to the La Liga 2025 news, the sticking point to his signing was that Vinicius felt he should have a salary package similar to that of the 2024 marquee signing Kylian Mbappe. But while the Frenchman gathered impressive momentum during his debut campaign, Vinicius was rather more hit and miss.
His representatives last met with the Saudis in February, but the club is not ruling out a late move in this window, and Alonso will already be on the lookout for a replacement if Vinicius does wave goodbye.
Rashford settles with the Blaugrana, and is Auba next?
Both Barcelona and Real Madrid still have work to do in the market, and the Catalans have had a relatively quiet time of it so far. Hansi Flick’s champions have signed highly rated goalkeeper Joan Garcia from neighbours Espanyol and have made the eye-catching loan of Marcus Rashford from Manchester United.
Rashford has lost his way in recent seasons, but he seemed to get back to his best in a loan deal at Aston Villa last season. And he has told his new teammates he is delighted to be at Barcelona on a season-long loan with a £26 million option to buy.
He made an appearance from the bench in Barcelona’s 3-1 win over Japanese team Vissel Kobe and looked lively in his 30-minute spell, and Rashford will get more time on the pitch before the new La Liga campaign begins.
And a new curious idea emerged over the weekend with the news that Barca are considering a return for their former striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. The Gabon star had a fine season in the Saudi Pro League, scoring 21 times for Al-Qadsiah, and, at 36 years of age, he may still be able to do a cameo job in La Liga.
Simeone’s spending is almost done
As I wrote in a recent SBOTOP blog, I really believe Atletico Madrid are title contenders again. They have been tooling up in readiness for the new campaign, and manager Diego Simeone, not known for his big spending, is inching close to his ninth signing of the summer.
€100 million of talent has already walked through the door, with winger Alex Baena moving from Villarreal as one of several exciting transfers. Defenders David Hancko and Marc Pubill have recently arrived, and now it seems VfB Stuttgart midfielder Enzo Millot is inching ever closer to Madrid.
The La Liga 2025 betting odds reckon Atleti are third favourites at the moment, but the club has bought well, and the odds will change quickly if they have a fast start and one of the El Clasico pair falters.
Elsewhere, the future of Manchester United winger Antony is still up in the air after he enjoyed a superb loan period at Real Betis last term. Like Rashford, the Brazilian winger was keen to play his football in La Liga this year, but Betis have, so far, been unwilling to meet the Red Devils’ financial demands.
And the La Liga side is likely to be under serious pressure to make their move if they want the player, as Saudi Pro League side Al-Nassr have entered the picture, and they would certainly meet Manchester United’s expectations.
The player has already turned down offers from Botafogo and Sau Paulo in his home country, so it seems it is up to Betis whether or not they want to keep the popular star.
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