Official: Real Madrid parts ways with a '9' and announces its transfer to a LaLiga club

The construction of the new Real Madrid, under the technical direction of Xabi Alonso, is still underway. From the Valdebebas offices, they keep a close eye on the requests of the Tolosa coach in the transfer market, but that activity would be paused... indefinitely, at least for now, while they readjust positions and wait for more departures.

One of the latest footballers to leave Santiago Bernabéu locker room is doing so due to a lack of opportunities in the first team. While it is true that he had made his debut at this stage, under the tactical command of Carlo Ancelotti, the list of forwards is more than complete. Álvaro Rodríguez is leaving as a transferred player heading to Elche.

The Alicante squad, according to the official statement from Real Madrid, has reached an agreement with the white team. The purpose of those negotiations was "the transfer of our player Álvaro Rodríguez", a deal that has been closed on terms very similar to other recent operations signed from La Fábrica.

The promising forward, due to the arrival of Kylian Mbappé in 2024 and the emergence of Gonzalo García in the Club World Cup, doesn't have a place. That doesn't prevent the Valdebebas offices from wanting to keep track of his progress meticulously, leaving the door open for a return to the merengue sports discipline.

Confirmed signing

Thus, Elche acquires the football services of Álvaro Rodríguez... but only 50%, since the remaining half of his transfer rights remains in the hands of Real Madrid. That same formula has become popular in the last two years among the bosses led by Florentino Pérez.

Given the result it showed with Fran García, who left for Rayo Vallecano under that formula, the white executives have understood that it is the best way to keep track. That is what happened with players like Nico Paz or Jacobo Ramón: the La Fábrica center-back left, just a few days ago, for Como 1907 under the same formula.

Álvaro Rodríguez signs a four-season contract with Elche, certifying his departure from Real Madrid: during last season he was on loan at Getafe. While it is true that he showed more than acceptable performance, it was not enough to consolidate him at the Coliseum. Nor in Santiago Bernabéu locker room, whose dynamics in the Club World Cup already anticipate the players Xabi Alonso will count on for the 25/26 season.

The similarity of profiles with respect to Gonzalo García is another reason why Álvaro Rodríguez has left the white first team this very summer. Both "9"s offer similar tactical solutions to Xabi Alonso... but the Tolosa coach has taken a closer look at the former "7" of Real Madrid Castilla and has seen his level firsthand.