Real Madrid has once again signed a young South American player, this time from Argentina. Franco Mastantuono (17) will not join the Royal Club until mid-August.
After his successful work with Florian Wirtz in Leverkusen, Xabi Alonso is now getting another promising top talent at Real Madrid: As the Royals announced on Friday afternoon, Franco Mastantuono is moving from Argentine top club River Plate to the Champions League record winners. The young offensive player has signed a six-year contract with Madrid until 2031.
According to Spanish media reports, the total transfer fee amounts to over €63 million, of which €45 million is attributable to the release clause in Mastantuono’s contract. This makes Mastantuono, at just 17 years of age, the most expensive player in the history of the Argentine league. Several top clubs were interested in the top talent, with Paris St. Germain in particular said to have been keen to sign the winger. Real has now won the race.
Mastantuono has made history not only with his transfer fee. The teenager is also the youngest goalscorer in the history of the traditional club River Plate. Last week, he also became the youngest player to play in a competitive match for the Argentine national team during his brief appearance in the World Cup qualifier against Chile. Diego Maradona still holds the record for the youngest player in a friendly match.
Mastantuono joined River Plate at the age of 11 and was promoted to the first team around a year and a half ago, where he made his debut at the end of January 2024 and quickly became a regular. He has scored ten goals in 61 competitive games for the Buenos Aires club.
However, it will be another two months before Mastantuono officially joins Real Madrid. As the club announced in a statement, the attacking player will not be under contract with Real until August 14, his 18th birthday. This means he can still participate in the Club World Cup with River Plate, where the top Argentine club will face Inter Milan, CF Monterrey, and Urawa Red Diamonds in the group stage.
