A man in a suit and glasses appears in the foreground inside a soccer stadium, while in the background a footballer wearing the red uniform of the Spanish national team can be seen.
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Florentino has a plan to sign Zubimendi for less than €60M

Florentino Pérez is clear about the need to strengthen Xabi Alonso's midfield

The Tolosa native Xabi Alonso will work with his players for the first time this Monday, at which point he will begin working with a focus on the Club World Cup.

This will mark the start of a new era at Real Madrid, which will also present Dean Huijsen and Trent Alexander-Arnold this week.

For now, both defenders are the new faces at the club for the world tournament, although they might not be the only ones.

Young player wearing a blue Spain national team jacket on a training field
Zubimendi is waiting for Real Madrid | Real Madrid Confidencial

"Our duty is to always want to improve. In every aspect of the game, as well as in squad planning. Therefore, since recently, since I became Real Madrid's coach, which was made official yesterday, I want to have this communication with the club to agree on how we can improve. The context we're going to be in will demand it. The squad is very good, as I said before, and I'm already eager to start working with them. Right now, I'm not coming in with demands, but with a desire to work with the team," Xabi Alonso himself said at a press conference.

Florentino has it clear

Meanwhile, Florentino Pérez is aware that he must improve the squad, so he keeps the idea of signing Martín Zubimendi, even more so after listening to the Basque.

"I've always said he was my idol and that for me it was a stroke of luck to have been able to train under him in the reserve team. I don't like to talk about those hypotheses, I like to talk about the present. I think it would be disrespectful to answer that while I'm with the national team and ahead of such an important competition," the midfielder stated.

These words gave a boost to Florentino Pérez and José Ángel Sánchez to make a move, although they consider his release price to be excessive.

Soccer player wearing the blue and white uniform of Real Sociedad during a match
Zubimendi wants to be under Xabi Alonso's command. "I've always said he was my idol and that for me it was a stroke of luck that he was able to coach me in the reserve team during a very important year," but he did not comment on possible interest from the Madrid club: "I don't like to talk about those hypotheses, I like to talk about the present. I think it would be disrespectful to answer that while being with the national team and ahead of such an important competition." | Real Madrid Confidencial

Real Sociedad refers to the €60 million ($60 million) release clause, an amount the Madrid club doesn't intend to reach.

This makes the Madrid directors consider La Fábrica to lower this price for Martín Zubimendi.

Florentino Pérez and José Ángel Sánchez want to include in this deal some promising talent from the youth academy who can convince Jokin Aperribay.

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