Real Madrid want to sign a centre-back this summer. Will it happen? And who could it be?

Real Madrid have problems in defence — and the club want to fix those by signing a centre-back this summer.

Carlo Ancelotti’s side have been short of options in that position over the past two seasons due to injuries and a lack of signings. Madrid have conceded 14 more goals this season (64) than in the whole of the last campaign across all competitions, when they won La Liga and the Champions League. Those defensive weaknesses showed up again as they were thrashed 3-0 by Arsenal in their Champions League quarter-final first leg.

In public, Ancelotti has hidden his discomfort with the situation to protect the board but internally, he has been calling for new signings for a while. The board’s intention and commitment is now to sign a centre-back in the summer — but some important voices at Madrid are still wary.

Here, The Athletic explains the situation. We spoke to sources within the club and with knowledge of their dealings who asked to remain anonymous to protect relationships.

Madrid’s initial plan was to sign a centre-back in 2025, but that was brought forward a year following David Alaba’s anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury in December 2023. They failed to sign the Manchester United-bound Leny Yoro last summer and suffered further blows with serious knee injuries to Dani Carvajal in October and Eder Militao in November — his second, after suffering an ACL injury a year earlier.

It seemed Madrid had no option but to sign another defender and there were several meetings to discuss the issue between chief executive Jose Angel Sanchez, chief scout Juni Calafat, director of football Santiago Solari and Ancelotti. President Florentino Perez was kept updated and always has the final say.

They ruled out making a free transfer in those talks — former club captain Sergio Ramos was available at the time — and expressed serious doubts they would find the right player in the January window. Madrid have not brought in a January signing for the senior squad since Brahim Diaz joined from Manchester City in 2019.

They did, however, agree to sign a right-back and a centre-back in the following two transfer windows. Trent Alexander-Arnold was the chosen option at right-back — Liverpool did not want to let him go in January but the board’s message to Ancelotti since the start of March has been that the England international, whose contract expires in the summer, will be a Madrid player next season.

At centre-back, there are more doubts and names being considered by the club.

Some at Madrid would like them to go for a young centre-back with great potential, but others are not discarding the option of an older player who could immediately perform, provided they are not too expensive.

One more experienced player who would fit into that group is Bayer Leverkusen’s Jonathan Tah, who will leave the German side this summer on a free transfer. The 29-year-old was offered to Madrid a few months ago, but the Spanish club turned him down.

The club are most keen on Arsenal’s William Saliba, on whom they have compiled very positive reports since he came through at French side Saint-Etienne when they considered signing him. Saliba joined Arsenal in 2019 but Madrid have kept a positive relationship with the 24-year-old’s entourage.

Despite this, Saliba joining this summer is highly unlikely. He has a contract with Arsenal until 2027 and the club want him to renew, so either Madrid would be turned down or any potential fee to sign him would be too high. That is why they are deploying their usual transfer strategy: staying close to the player discreetly and preparing the ground to try and sign him in 2026 for an affordable amount or in 2027 as a free agent.

Several players in Madrid’s current squad arrived via the first route, including goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois from Chelsea in 2018 for €40million (£34m/$45m), Eduardo Camavinga from Rennes in 2021 for €31m plus bonuses and Brahim from City in January 2019 for €19m plus bonuses. Players who joined after their contracts at previous clubs expired include Alaba from Bayern Munich in 2021, Antonio Rudiger from Chelsea in 2022 and Kylian Mbappe from Paris Saint-Germain last year, although Mbappe was given a significant salary and signing fee.

Bournemouth’s Dean Huijsen is another centre-back talked about behind the scenes. The Netherlands-born Spain international is admired within Madrid and has a deal with Bournemouth until 2030, but this includes a £50million ($64.7m) exit clause. Sources with knowledge of the situation say it is difficult to see Madrid spending so much money on a 19-year-old. The Athletic’s David Ornstein reported in his Thursday Q&A session that it looked most probable he would join another Premier League club, with Liverpool, Chelsea and Arsenal all interested.

Madrid have been in contact with Huijsen’s entourage and have received positive signs, but the expectation is Huijsen will leave Bournemouth for another Premier League club this summer.

Huijsen made his Spain debut last month (Aitor Alcalde/Getty Images)

Reports have also linked Madrid with players including RB Leipzig’s Castello Lukeba and Jorrel Hato of Ajax. Lukeba, a 22-year-old French centre-back, has a buy-out clause worth around €90m but agreed with Leipzig during his latest renewal that he could leave for a lower fee. The Premier League is his most likely destination.

And despite Madrid’s defensive problems and the board’s intentions, some sources at their Valdebebas training ground doubt they will sign a centre-back. They cite previous ‘promises’ on signings that were not kept and the number of centre-backs on the wage bill. The board have previously pointed to this and the academy as two reasons not to make signings.

Alaba is almost 33, has a contract until 2026 and wants to stay, according to those close to him. The 32-year-old Rudiger’s deal also runs until next year; he wants to stay despite interest from Saudi Arabia. Militao, 27, renewed his deal in 2022 until 2028 and will stay.

Raul Asencio has settled into the starting line-up since his promotion from the ‘B’ team, Real Madrid Castilla, and the club executed pre-set conditions to extend his deal until 2027. More meetings are planned to review the 22-year-old’s current conditions. In February, The Athletic reported Asencio remained under investigation for allegedly sharing a sex tape involving a minor after a Spanish court rejected an appeal for the dismissal of the case.

Midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni has played regularly at centre-back in the last two seasons, despite not wanting to. And there are options from the youth ranks, including the 20-year-old Jacobo Ramon (if he does not leave in the summer) and the highly-rated Joan Martinez, 17, who is in the final stages of recovering from a knee injury he suffered in pre-season.

The only certain departure in defence is Jesus Vallejo, who neither the board nor Ancelotti have been counting on and whose contract ends this summer. He has made just 32 appearances for Madrid since joining in 2015 and has been sent out on loan five times.

Everything points to Madrid needing a fresh pair of legs at the back. Whether that will happen this summer is another question.

(Top photo: Mateo Villalba/Getty Images)

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