Confirmed: Real Madrid's number one target for midfield in 2026

The 2025 summer transfer window has ended, at least for Real Madrid, with no last-minute moves. That is a circumstance that the Merengue bosses had already announced and Xabi Alonso knew firsthand, as he himself stated in a press conference before Real Mallorca.

However, that lack of moves doesn't mean that activity has completely stopped in the Valdebebas offices. Nothing could be further from the truth according to information from multiple media outlets and journalists, including Fabrizio Romano. The Italian reporter points out that Real Madrid has several names listed on its shortlist for 2026.

One of the first to appear in that compilation is one of the players who remained, for several weeks, on Madrid's radar: the German Angelo Stiller. In fact, the Stuttgart footballer was linked with Real Madrid through several rumors due to one of Xabi Alonso's transfer requests. After the Club World Cup, in order to completely finalize the squad, the Basque coach demanded two more signings.

In addition to adding another center-back to Santiago Bernabéu locker room, signing a creative midfielder with a defensive profile became essential. Players such as Adam Wharton, Vitinha, or Angelo Stiller himself fit that profile. Fabrizio Romano notes that there is no agreement of any kind between the two clubs.

They are thinking about it

However, his name doesn't go unnoticed by Madrid's sporting management. So much so that he is one of the options being considered to strengthen the Merengue midfield for the summer of 2026. In fact, the German footballer's transfer conditions remain affordable compared to the demands of his competitors for the position.

The signing of Vitinha from PSG, a club with no institutional relationship, could only take place as a free agent: the Portuguese player is under contract until mid-2029. The bad news increases as several elite European clubs have inquired about Adam Wharton in the last weeks of August.

From the upper echelons of Selhurst Park they are demanding around 100 million euros for their player, a price that Real Madrid is not willing to pay for the young Englishman. Given this situation, Fabrizio Romano understands that Real Madrid is considering acquiring the football services of Angelo Stiller for the summer transfer window of 2026.

This would be its best bet for Xabi Alonso's midfield, who must rely on Arda Güler and Franco Mastantuono, both "escorted" by Dani Ceballos, to add creativity to its line-ups. The search for Toni Kroos's heir could finally be solved thanks to Angelo Stiller, two years after the legendary Madrid "8" retired.