Real Madrid have completed the signing of Franco Mastantuono from River Plate.
The 17-year-old will sign a six-year deal with the Spanish champions, joining the club officially on August 14, a day before River Plate’s Copa Libertadores last-16 tie against Libertad.
Mastantuono’s contract at River contained a release clause of €45million (£38.5m). A transfer at that fee would represent a club record sale for them, beating the previous record set by Enzo Fernandez’s €44m move to Benfica in 2022.
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The Athletic reported on June 4 that Madrid had held talks with the Argentina international’s representatives over a potential summer move, while Paris Saint-Germain had also held an interest in his signing.
Madrid have been interested in signing Mastantuono since July 2024. Sources with knowledge of the situation, speaking on the condition of anonymity, indicated that his preference would be a move to the Spanish capital if he was to leave River.
The 17-year-old Argentinian is the third arrival at Madrid this summer, following the arrivals of Trent Alexander-Arnold from Liverpool and Dean Huijsen from Bournemouth.
Mastantuono made his senior debut for River in January 2024, aged 16, becoming the club’s third-youngest player ever. Capable of operating as an attacking midfielder or on the right side of a front three, he has gone on to make 61 appearances in total, scoring 10 goals and providing seven assists.
The teenager holds dual Italian-Argentinian citizenship and has been capped up to under-20 level by Argentina. He was called up to the senior squad for the first time by head coach Lionel Scaloni for World Cup qualifiers against Chile and Colombia.
Madrid and River are competing at this summer’s Club World Cup in the United States, although they cannot meet until at least the quarter-final stage.
The former tennis starlet who has risen rapidly in Argentina
Analysis by James Horncastle
Mastantuono has already been crowned the new Messi, a crown too heavy for anyone. This week, he came on as a late substitute against Chile, becoming the youngest player to appear in a competitive game for Argentina, taking the record from… Messi.
But we should let him be his own person. He is a different kind of ’No 10’, ganglier, with the body of a Wimbledon tennis champion. As a 12-year-old, Mastantuono was one of the most promising tennis players in his age group in Argentina.
He settled on football instead and rose rapidly at River Plate. Mastantuono made his debut at 16 and became the youngest scorer in River’s history 10 days later with a scrappy but memorable goal against Excursionistas in the cup. That he was different became immediately and abundantly clear. Mastantuono curled a free kick onto the bar in the same game.
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He goes into this summer’s Club World Cup with seven goal involvements in his last 10 appearances for River. You just hope that Mastantuono’s development pathway is clear at Madrid. His former team-mate Claudio Echeverri has barely played for Manchester City. Carlo Ancelotti was criticised for not giving Endrick and Arda Guler enough playing time at Madrid. His compatriot, Nico Paz, had to go to Como.
Clubs away from the harshest spotlights, such as Benfica, have tended to be the best landing point for uber-talented South Americans and their phased introduction into European football. But the auction for Mastantuono had been underway for some time and Madrid put themselves firmly at the front of the queue.
(Marcelo Endelli/Getty Images)
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