Looking ahead to the 2024 summer transfer window, it is highly expected that one of the areas that Real Madrid will look to address is at full-back.
Alphonso Davies has been heavily linked with joining from Bayern Munich, and could well be available on a cut-price deal. If the Canadian does join, he would lock up the left-back position at Real Madrid for the next decade at least, which would be ideal for Florentino Perez.
Real Madrid look likely to address the right-back position too. Dani Carvajal has struggled to reach a consistent high level over the last 12 months, and if that continues to be the case this season too, there is a strong chance that a new first-choice right-back is looked for by the club’s sporting department.
Reece James, among others, has emerged as a possible candidate for Real Madrid, and he would be an excellent pick-up – injury record depending. However, they may go for a younger, cheaper option to compete with Carvajal, and there would not be many better in that regard that Arnau Martinez of Girona.
The 20-year-old is widely considered to be one of the most promising full-backs in Spanish football, and has been a regular starter for Girona over the past couple of years. He has lost his place this season in favour of Yan Couto, but that is more to do with the Brazilian having been excellent since joining on from Manchester City in the summer.
A report from 90min says that Real Madrid, along with Barcelona and Man City, are interested in signing Martinez, who would likely be available in the region of €10-15m. In the grand scheme of things, this could be a bargain.
Martinez has proven himself to be an excellent young option at La Liga level, and he would have no problem coming in as an initial backup to Carvajal, before looking to make the right-back position his own over the coming years.
If Real Madrid were to spend big on Davies and Mbappe (in terms of wages rather than a transfer fee), they could go for a cheaper option in Martinez, and theoretically, signing him would be very low risk as his value would not go down, even if he proves to be below par (which would be unlikely).
Martinez is adept in both defensive and attacking areas of the pitch, and would be an excellent option to compliment Carvajal, whom he would also get valuable experience from.
With all of these points added up, it would make complete sense for Real Madrid to try to sign Martinez next summer. However, it remains to be seen whether they do just that.
