Real Madrid’s right-back search is speeding up. Who should they sign?

Even before Dani Carvajal’s anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) knee injury, Real Madrid were making plans to reinforce at right-back.

Now the 32-year-old Spain international is expected to be out for at least eight months, and with no ready-made profiles available from the reserve teams or youth academy, it stands to reason that they will now accelerate their search.

As they usually do with all positions, the reigning Spanish and European champions have been studying the market and discretely enquiring about targets for some time now — although there have been no significant developments yet.

Here, The Athletic’s Mario Cortegana and Anantaajith Raghuraman take a look at some of the options Madrid could consider. The players featured below were chosen based on the Bernabeu club’s track record of seeking market opportunities (such as that which might be presented if Trent Alexander-Arnold were to not renew his Liverpool contract and become a free agent next summer) as well as them having similar strengths to Carvajal.

But first — a further word on exactly what Madrid might be looking to replace.

As his smarterscout graph — which gives players’ games a series of ratings from zero and 99 relating to either how often they perform a given stylistic action or how effective they are at it — shows below, Carvajal’s key qualities are his versatility, link-up play and ability to read danger.

During Carvajal’s first-team career (since 2013), Madrid have generated more attacks from their left than the right, thanks to the presence of Cristiano Ronaldo and Marcelo in the past and Vinicius Junior now. Kylian Mbappe’s arrival this summer is more likely to continue that trend in future years.

With the team’s offensive play often concentrated on the opposite flank, Carvajal has had more defensive responsibilities. He has been a capable defender out wide and has also dropped inside to form a back three with his centre-back colleagues when required.

Going forward, his crossing has been an asset. His 31 chances created from crosses over the past five completed La Liga seasons is the most in the Madrid squad behind Fran Garcia’s 36. He underlaps and overlaps to good effect and also pops up with important goals — as he showed in last season’s Champions League final against Borussia Dortmund.

Madrid’s future right-back will surely need to possess these qualities too. In addition to offering defensive solidity and some attacking output, versatility will be an added advantage.

Cortegana: Alexander-Arnold’s name is the first on this list of possible reinforcements, given he fits in perfectly with Madrid’s transfer policy in recent years.

His ability, age (he turned 26 on Monday), versatility, experience with both Liverpool and England and his contractual situation make him attractive to Madrid. They see themselves at a financial disadvantage compared to Premier League clubs and Paris Saint-Germain, so look to convince players of their history and sporting project, targeting those who are in the last or penultimate year of their contract. They try to avoid getting into bidding wars over players.

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Alexander-Arnold’s contract with boyhood club Liverpool is set to expire on June 30 and any serious move by Madrid depends on him not signing a new one. His friend and England team-mate Jude Bellingham is reported to have spoken highly of both the club and the city to him since his own move to the Bernabeu from Dortmund in summer 2023, but that is unlikely to be the decisive factor in any deal.

Alexander-Arnold made his Liverpool debut back in 2016 (Andrew Kearns – CameraSport via Getty Images)

In that context, Alexander-Arnold’s words to UK broadcaster ITV when on England duty this week were very interesting indeed.

“I’ve entered the prime of my career right now, and I don’t want to be the player who only won trophies when he was young,” he said.

Raghuraman: Alexander-Arnold is renowned for his offensive prowess, with 19 goals and 83 assists in 319 matches for Liverpool. For much of his senior career, Jurgen Klopp gave the Englishman licence to roam into midfield and function as his team’s creative hub, with his crosses from open-play, set pieces and switches that stretched out opposing defences. Typically, the right-sided central midfielder dropped back to cover the space he left behind while marauding forward.

However, Arne Slot’s arrival as head coach this summer has seen Alexander-Arnold return to a more orthodox right-back position. As the table below shows, his overall touches and long-pass attempts have fallen, with a higher percentage of his involvement coming in the defensive and midfield thirds.

Alexander-Arnold has also attempted just 6.0 open-play passes into the penalty area and 9.5 passes into the final third per 90 minutes in the 2024-25 Premier League so far, his lowest tally in the past six seasons. Simultaneously, his 4.9 adjusted tackles (tackles per 1,000 opponent touches) per 90 is some distance ahead of his next-best tally, 3.1 in 2022-23.

While the caveat here is the reduced sample size, it also speaks to the change in his role under Slot.

Additionally, Slot’s willingness to adopt a defensive setup based on in-game situations has meant Alexander-Arnold has been placed in more one-on-one situations. He has faced a dribbler on 4.2 occasions per 90 in comparison to a career average of 3.5. While he has struggled while back-pedalling against wingers who cut inside and can overcommit on occasion, his 61 per cent success rate in tackling — well over his career average of 49 per cent – suggests he has the potential to improve.

There is evidence to suggest, then, that Alexander-Arnold’s defensive frailties could be reduced with more exposure to these situations. Additionally, playing alongside a workhorse midfielder such as Madrid’s Federico Valverde could provide him with more cover.

Cortegana: This is a player Madrid have been compiling positive reports on for years.

His ability, age and wealth of experience in La Liga with Girona and Real Valladolid, in Portugal with Sporting Lisbon and now in the Premier League with Spurs are all big pluses. The 25-year-old has also made three Spain appearances and was recalled to Luis de la Fuente’s squad for this month’s two Nations League fixtures.

The most significant obstacles to any potential move are that he has a contract until summer 2028 and Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy is known to be a tough negotiator — something executives at the Bernabeu are well aware of, with Madrid having previously signed Luka Modric and Gareth Bale from the north London club.

Porro joined Spurs from Sporting for €45m in January 2023 (Simon Stacpoole/Offside/Offside via Getty Images)

Raghuraman: Like Alexander-Arnold, Porro is a full-back better known for his exploits in the attacking third than in defence. The Spaniard recorded three goals and seven assists in 35 Premier League games last season and has already scored once in the seven so far in this one.

Porro has operated high up the pitch for virtually his entire senior club career, having played as a right wing-back for Sporting and as an inverting right-back under Ange Postecoglou at Spurs. He links up well with his forwards and can deliver good crosses from open play and set pieces, and also has the ability to play through balls that split open a defence.

Porro’s work rate is worth commending, too. He managed 5.8 recoveries per 90 in the league last season, ranking in the top 18 per cent of full-backs, and played a significant role in Tottenham’s press.

His weaknesses have been in transitional defending, especially with respect to opponents’ underlaps and overlaps. He has repeatedly been caught out by blindside runs, resulting in crosses into Spurs’ box from his flank.

Madrid would require more defensive awareness from Porro, even if his attacking qualities would add unpredictability to their attack.

Raghuraman: Frimpong could be an exciting long-term option for Madrid to consider, though he offers a different profile to Carvajal.

The Dutchman’s best moments for Leverkusen have come while playing as a de-facto right-winger in Xabi Alonso’s system, as his touchmap below shows. Frimpong ended last season with nine goals and nine assists in 31 Bundesliga appearances and has already scored and assisted in the German top flight six games into this one.

Leverkusen’s average possession of 62 per cent was the highest in the division last season, which helped them post the best defensive record, too (24 goals conceded). It also meant Frimpong wasn’t regularly tested in defence, with the 23-year-old averaging just 1.0 tackles per 90 (this put him in the bottom six per cent among full-backs). Before last season, Frimpong often struggled in one-on-one situations and could be overzealous in his desire to win the ball back and initiate an attack.

At Madrid, he would likely have more defensive responsibility and reduced attacking impact, given the team’s established preference for the left flank. The jury is out on whether he can adapt his game to fit into that mould.

Cortegana: Several reports have linked Frimpong with Madrid, but that has never materialised into concrete interest from the Spanish end.

Madrid do like Frimpong for his attacking enterprise and athleticism. It also helps that he has become a key player for Alonso’s Bundesliga champions, as the former Madrid, Liverpool and Spain midfielder is one of the leading candidates to become head coach at the Bernabeu in the future.

Frimpong joined Leverkusen from Celtic in 2021 (Rico Brouwer/Soccrates/Getty Images)

Frimpong finds the idea of playing in Spain attractive, particularly for 15-time European champions Madrid. He renewed his contract last year until 2028, but the €40million release clause it includes would be affordable.

Raghuraman: The first of two lower-profile La Liga options on our list.

Aramburu was playing for Real Sociedad’s ‘B’ team six months ago. He had, however, been a part of the first-team fold since the start of that season and ended 2023-24 by featuring in 11 of their final 17 La Liga games.

Aramburu was one of the breakout stars of the Copa America (Cesar Ortiz/Soccrates/Getty Images)

He then impressed for Venezuela at this summer’s Copa America. He recorded two assists, but it was his robust defensive work that brought him admirers. Aramburu’s 9.0 tackles per 90 were the most by any full-back at the tournament. He also won 80 per cent of his dribbler tackles (also the highest) and made 5.2 recoveries.

Aramburu’s standout moment was this sliding tackle in the final seconds of a 1-0 defeat of Mexico in the group stage. His celebration after the awarding of a goal kick is testament to the 21-year-old’s desire to win tackles and matches.

Aramburu has carried that form into the new club season, starting five of La Real’s past six matches before this international break. They kept three clean sheets in those games, with Aramburu winning 64 per cent of his tackles while also creating seven chances. He brings versatility, too, having previously played as a left-back and centre-back for club and country.

Cortegana: Aramburu’s increased prominence under coach Imanol Alguacil means Real Sociedad are keeping an eye on his situation given potential interest from other teams. He has a deal with their reserve team until 2027.

Cortegana: Juanlu has long been on Madrid’s radar. The club even considered signing him for their youth academy.

His age (he turned 21 in August), Spanish nationality and his contract situation are points in favour. In 2022, Juanlu extended his deal with Sevilla until 2026 and he has an affordable buy-out clause.

Juanlu has previously been tracked by Madrid (Juan Manuel Serrano Arce/Getty Images)

Juanlu was part of the Spain side that won Olympic gold this summer and clubs in England are keeping an eye on his situation. New Sevilla coach Garcia Pimienta has used him as a winger, a full-back and a central midfielder already this season. He has room for improvement defensively.

Raghuraman: Juanlu made his league debut for Sevilla as an 18-year-old in a 1-1 draw with Barcelona in December 2021. A productive spell with Mirandes in the 2022-23 second tier (two goals and five assists in 38 league games) saw him re-enter the first-team fold at the Ramon Sanchez-Pizjuan stadium last season as a backup to Jesus Navas, now 38.

He started just four of Sevilla’s first 13 La Liga games but received a string of starts following Navas’ two-match suspension and hamstring injury in December. Navas’ return to the side reduced his minutes again, but the 21-year-old still played in 26 league games and started half of their six Champions League matches.

Juanlu stood out as a bright spot in a difficult season for the Andalusians last term, and it earned him a call-up to the Olympic squad. He then featured in four of their five matches in France, scoring the winner in their semi-final against Morocco.

He is versatile, having been deployed in midfield at times, as mentioned above, and can cut inside or overlap the right-winger as required. He is happy to snap into tackles, though his 46 per cent success rate since the start of last season can improve. At 6ft (183 cm) tall, he uses his height well to win aerial duels.

Juanlu’s crossing is another impressive feature of his game. He has a quick release, which gives defenders less time to close him down. While on occasion he puts too much power and height on these deliveries, they cause problems for defenders when he gets them right.

He also has a burst of acceleration, which allows him to keep up with opposition attackers and dribble past players at pace. In the clip below, he eases past a Rayo Vallecano marker before whipping in a dangerous cross that is headed wide.

Juanlu is a low-profile signing with future potential who Madrid could target.

(Top photo: Getty Images)