Radical change with Huijsen and Saliba, Real Madrid decides overnight

One of the big news related to Real Madrid in recent weeks has been the approach to signing Dean Huijsen. The footballer from AFC Bournemouth, after many doubts in the Valdebebas offices, would be about to join Santiago Bernabéu locker room for the next season.

His incorporation into the merengue sports discipline not only implies a sort of race against time by the executives led by Florentino Pérez. The arrival of Xabi Alonso in the capital of Spain is imminent, with only two weeks remaining. The Basque coach would want to have up to three signings to attend the Club World Cup in the United States that starts next June 18 for the white squad itself.

That's why the Madrid bosses would have given the green light to modify their roadmap in the debate about the next central defender, changing a very strict order of priorities. Until now, Real Madrid considered William Saliba as the number one candidate to add reinforcements to the first team's defensive line, a situation that has changed considerably.

One of the reasons that have led to this alteration is the closeness that Dean Huijsen has always shown with the possibility of wearing the merengue jersey from this summer. While William Saliba has been much more neutral, the footballer from AFC Bournemouth has not hesitated to make multiple gestures for the past two months, when he debuted with the national team.

Change in the order of priorities

Another decisive factor for Dean Huijsen to surpass William Saliba in the signing of a central defender in the Valdebebas offices is the transfer demanded by their clubs. Thus, the signing of Dean Huijsen seemed much more accessible given that his release clause was set at 58 million euros... a price with which the merengue bosses have had to deal until they surrendered to the evidence.

Meanwhile, Arsenal would request at least a transfer of 100M euros to let go of one of the stars of Mikel Arteta's scheme. Despite the footballer having a contract until summer 2027, the gunner bosses are willing to sell the established French central defender at a high price to a competitor in the Champions League.

Arsenal was also interested in acquiring Dean Huijsen's services to accompany William Saliba in the north London defense line. According to the information revealed by "The Athletic," the options of the English capital team vanished when Real Madrid took part in that saga, changing the priorities of the Spanish central defender.

This case, points out the American media, will at least provide some relief in Real Madrid's 'pressure' for the signing of William Saliba. This relaxation anticipated by "The Athletic" would be the moment Arsenal would take advantage of to carry out and complete the talks for his renewal... thus securing the player against a possible attempt to sign at a reduced price in 2026 or a free agent signing in 2027.