Real Close in on Diomande

Real Madrid are reportedly entering the final stage of their pursuit of Yan Diomande. According to Ben Jacobs and Alex Crook, an agreement in principle has been reached, with the 19-year-old winger accepting the terms of a five-year contract. Sky Sports previously reported that Madrid’s opening offer had been rejected, but negotiations continued. The final fee could reportedly reach around €120 million.

Diomande finished his first Bundesliga season with 12 goals and nine assists in 33 appearances, while also impressing for Ivory Coast at the World Cup. If completed, this would be another major addition following the arrivals of Cucurella, Dumfries, Konaté and Bernardo Silva. Madrid are no longer filling gaps in their squad — they are adding another wing to the palace.

Barcelona, meanwhile, are watching from their favourite position: Real are finalising a player while Barça are finalising the explanation for why no signing should also be considered a signing. In Madrid, “the final stage” means paperwork and a medical. In Barcelona, it usually means another meeting about an internal solution.

There has been no official announcement yet, and some reports from Germany have played down claims that a full agreement is already in place. The direction is still clear: Real are building their squad on several fronts, while Barcelona are trying to convince everyone that patience can also play on the wing. Sources: TalkSport, Sky Sports and AS.