Real Madrid are in the business of building up their defense this summer transfer window. New manager Jose Mourinho has already landed three new stars in Denzel Dumfries, Marc Cucurella, and free agent Ibrahima Konate, but he still wants one more center back - and his biggest investment yet - to fill out the team.
Manchester City's Josko Gvardiol and Ruben Dias were two huge dream options for Mou, but the Champions League rivals were thoroughly uninterested in selling either player. Piero Hincapie and Riccardo Calafiori of Arsenal have landed on the radar, but Madrid do not appaer to be seriously pushing for either - and Arsenal seem to have the Ecuadorian fully off limits after just confirming his permanent purchase from Bayer Leverkusen.
Nico Schlotterbeck of Borussia Dortmund has a release clause and appeared to be a top option, but his injury at the 2026 World Cup has pretty much taken him off the list. So that leaves Inter Milan star Alessandro Bastoni as the last big star standing, and though he seemed like a pipe dream initially when Mourinho first start floating his name, he may now be the most logical target for the Merengues.
Alessandro Bastoni is the main man now
According to a new report from Miguel Serrano, via the Madrid Zone, the Italian international is indeed the No. 1 favorite option for Jose Mourinho. And better yet for the Madridistas, Real Madrid have decided now that they want to go all in and sign Bastoni as their main center back target to fill out the back four.
Alessandro Bastoni could cost around 70 million euros, and while Real Madrid have sold Nico Paz to Como so that he is no longer a potentially makeweight in a deal with Inter Milan, Madridistas would prefer not to have sold the playmaker to the Nerazzurri anyway.
Los Blancos got 60 million euros out of the Paz sale to the Serie A up and comers, so that gives them more capital to make the Bastoni deal happen. Bastoni is the best ball playing center back in the world and left footed, and those are the two traits Real Madrid seem to be valuing the most in Mourinho's final defensive signing of the summer 2026 transfer window.
Of course, Bastoni, a multi time Serie A champion and Champions League Finalist, can defend, too. He is not yet in the full prime of his career, but he is already the best at what he does in Serie A and one of the world's most unique talents. Madridistas will love that their club are listening to Mourinho and going after him.
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