Matteo Moretto Transfer Column: Yarek Gasiorowski, Real Madrid priorities and Marc-Andre ter Stegen’s injury

Barcelona goalkeeper situation after Marc-Andre ter Stegen’s injury

After Marc-Andre ter Stegen was ruled out for at least a large chunk of the season, a number of names have come out as possible replacements. Claudio Bravo has declared he would be willing to step out of retirement and step in, while Mundo Deportivo say Keylor Navas would also be happy to join. The truth is that I am still working on the story, and trying to get confirmation on whether either of them would be options.

What I can say so far is that there are a lot of goalkeepers being offered to them, and Barcelona are definitely browsing the market and evaluating who is available. They are also weighing up what they want in terms of profile to replace ter Stegen too. The club also trusts Inaki Pena, and they believe that he is capable of being number one while ter Stegen is out. They are looking at their options though, and there is a very long list of names that are being put out there.

In the coming days, they will likely decide on whether they are to sign a goalkeeper, and if they are, exactly what type of goalkeeper they want to go for.

Valencia starlet linked to Real Madrid has interest from Serie A clubs

Cards on the table, I have to say that I personally am yet to receive confirmation of links between Yarek Gasiorowski and Real Madrid. That was reported by Diario AS last week, but what I can reveal is that there are Serie A teams that are following him closely.

Any interest in Yarek has to be nuanced with the fact that he will renew his contract with Valencia. His current deal expires next summer, but he will not be a free agent, as an extension clause will be triggered if he reaches 20 games, and he is currently on 18. The 19-year-old has a release clause of €45m too, so that will give Valencia a bit more control over him. There are a lot of clubs enquiring about his situation, Italian sides amongst them, and about the asking price for him.

It is quite early to be speaking about him, but from January onwards we might have a better idea of what his future holds. It’s a story for next summer rather than the January transfer window though, at least as things stand.

Real Madrid working on centre-back options after missing out on Leny Yoro this summer

What I do know about Real Madrid’s interest in central defenders is that they are definitely scouting the position with a view to bringing in someone, whether that’s next summer or a little further down the line. The plan is to study the options available in central midfield, and in central defence. It would be no surprise if they brought in a reinforcement at the back.

There are the cases of Trent Alexander-Arnold and Alphonso Davies, but they are separate from this discussion because they are free agents, market opportunities that are top quality. I would say that while there are some names coming out, like Yarek, their shortlist for the defence likely consists of quite a few names at this stage, and it is longer than just the ones that have been reported so far. They obviously have youngster Joan Martinez, who is recovering from an ACL injury, but they are looking, no doubt.

Matteo Moretto will be back with more transfer news in the coming days, providing exclusive information on the biggest stories in Spain and Italy.