Napoli Defender on Real Madrid Radar After Big Injury | OneFootball

Real Madrid are eyeing Serie A to address their defense after a few injuries and are considering bringing back an old acquaintance, Rafa Marin, who hasn’t won over Antonio Conte in the early going. The center-back joined Napoli on a permanent deal but with some caveats, El Chiringuito reports (via Virgilio)

The 22-year-old has made just one appearance in Coppa Italia so far. Alessandro Buongiorno and Amir Rrahmani have been able to start in almost every game. Juan Jesus got the nod the only time the former sat out.

Real Madrid didn’t completely cede control over Rafa Marin once they sent him to Napoli but don’t have a clause to sign him in January. The two sides would have to negotiate to make it happen. Instead, Los Blancos could re-acquire him for €25M in 2026 and €35M in 2027. The sums would significantly increase if the Azzurri paid €10M more next summer.

Los Galacticos have also been linked to Mario Hermoso and Evan N’Dicka. Rather than selling, the Azzurri are keen on adding to their rearguard. They are highly interested in Ko Itakura. However, it’s not certain Borussia Moenchengladbach will be open for business in January, Sky informs (via Tuttomercatoweb).

Our Take on Real Madrid, Rafa Marin, and Napoli

He’s barely been given the chance after playing a lot in the friendlies. It’s hard for a player to come back if Conte doesn’t rate him, and he has two studs ahead of him in the depth chart. On the other hand, they aren’t deep, and they’d have to replace him properly if they were to pull the plug on him so soon.