Man City Lose Brahim Diaz To Real Madrid

Real Madrid has reached an agreement for the signing of Brahim Diaz from Manchester City, according to reports. The 19-year-old has been the subject of transfer speculations in the last several months after refusing to renew his contract with the Premier League champions.

As per MARCA, the City academy graduate will achieve two goals at once with this move: returning home to Spain with his family, and signing for dream club Real Madrid.

It’s understood that Man City had demanded €20 million for Diaz after it had become clear that he was bent on leaving the club. With his current deal set to expire in the summer, the academy graduate could have left on a free hence the need to sell the player in January in order to recoup some of the investment already made on him.

However, the Spanish giants offered €10 million before both clubs had to settle for €15 million plus add-ons on a six-year contract. The young midfielder is set to earn grossly €3.5 million a year at the Santiago Bernabéu.

With the plethora of young stars still waiting in the wings, it could be surprising to an outsider that Madrid is making such an investment on another prospect. However, for a player with such immense talent that he could be the next big thing in a few years time, the European champions have done no wrong.

It remains to be seen how he will progress in the Spanish capital. But he has already demonstrated what an exceptional talent he is while with City. Although strong competition for a place in Pep Guardiola’s team is also said to have contributed to the his decision to leave. Despite being highly rated by the Catalan manager, he was relegated to making appearances in the League Cup this term.

But who can blame the manager who has the likes of Bernardo Silva, Kevin De Bruyne, David Silva, Leroy Sane, Raheem Sterling and Riyad Mahrez to choose from? Fellow academy graduate Phil Foden is also vying for the remaining scarcely available minutes after each of these have had their turn.

That left the Spanish youth international unable to make even the substitute bench for both Premier League and Champions League matches at City. Relegated, he must have thought he’d rather be on the fringes of the team at home than in a foreign land, more so at a club considered to be more successful than City.

It could be recalled that the player refused to go on loan even to a Spanish club, preferring instead to stay back and fight for his place in Guardiola’s team. But with several options available in his position, it proved difficult for the manager to incorporate him into the starting XI. This resulted in a stand off between player and club as his demands for regular playing time could not be met.

A similar scenario occurred with Jadon Sancho not too long ago when the young Englishman chose to leave City for Borussia Dortmund.

Diaz’s departure will make him the second high-profile academy graduate after Sancho to leave the Etihad Stadium for another top European side in under a year. One can only hope this does not become a trend.