Real Madrid appear increasingly likely to finish the summer transfer window without another signing, with club director Emilio Butragueño reinforcing Jose Mourinho’s message that the current squad is effectively complete.
Los Blancos have already been among the busiest clubs of the summer.
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Six new players, namely Yan Diomande, Denzel Dumfries, Bernardo Silva, Marc Cucurella, Ibrahima Konaté and Carlos Espi, have arrived to reinforce Mourinho’s options.
That activity has left Real Madrid with a crowded squad, and the challenge now is not finding another player in the transfer market but creating room for one.
The problem is that no member of the current group is keen to leave.
Hence, when asked about the possibility of further Real Madrid transfers, Butragueño made the club’s position clear.
“New signings? As the mister [Mourinho] said, the squad is closed for us.”
Real Madrid leave a small door open
Butragueño stopped short of declaring that nothing could change before the transfer deadline.
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In fact, the former Real Madrid forward and current Director of Institutional Relations acknowledged that there is still time for the market to move.
“However, the transfer window is still open.”
For the moment, though, Real Madrid’s position is straightforward.
Mourinho has already said he considers his squad closed, and any late addition would almost certainly require movement in the opposite direction first, which has proved difficult so far.
Manu Kone remains a name to watch
Manu Kone is the latest player to link with Real Madrid. (Photo by Buda Mendes/Getty Images)
One player who has recently featured in Real Madrid transfer speculation is AS Roma midfielder Manu Kone.
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Real Madrid are closely monitoring the French international during the final week of the summer window, with Kone under contract in Rome until 2029.
As reported before, a potential deal could require a fee of around €60 million.
The interest makes sense from a footballing perspective, but there is an important distinction between admiring a player and being in a position to sign him.
As things stand, a Manu Kone move to Real Madrid appears to depend entirely on whether a player leaves before the market closes.
Without an exit, there is little indication that the club is preparing to force another signing into an already full squad.
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