Real Madrid knew at the start of 2024-25 season that they need to sign at least one more centre-back. They were going into the season with two ACL returnees in David Alaba (who did not come back until January), Eder Militao and an aging but brilliant Antonio Rudiger.
Jesus Vallejo was never an option, and using Aurelien Tchouameni at centre-back was not the best idea either, though it had worked out in the past.
Real Madrid were really lucky with the promotion of Raul Asencio to the first team, and he has been a mainstay for the club ever since he made the jump.
However, it is clear that Real Madrid need another defender. There have been rumors about Real Madrid being interested in Dean Huijsen, who has been brilliant at Bournemouth.
According to AS, Real Madrid have Huijsen in their orbit, and they could want to move for him in the summer. The report also says that he has already visited the Valdebebas training centre along with his father and agent.
Dean Huijsen feels proud to be linked with a club like Real Madrid
Huijsen recently talked about Real Madrid's interest in him, calling it a proud moment to be linked with a club as big as Real Madrid.
He said: "It's a source of pride to have such a big team interested in you. It's something special and it means you're doing well."
Real Madrid also wanted to sign Huijsen in the past when he was playing at Malaga, but he decided to move to Juventus instead. He gave his reason why.
He said: "It was a very good option [to move to Real Madrid], but at the time I thought that the best thing for me was to learn a little bit of the defensive aspect, and I think I have learned it now.”
The 19-year-old is now one of the most sought-after centre-backs in world football, and it remains to be seen where the future is for the talented defender.
Real Madrid could certainly do with someone like him. That way, Asencio and Huijsen could be teammates at both club and national level, as they both look set to make their debut for Spain in the international break.