Real Madrid intentionally signing young players: An Interview with Lucas Navarrete

It’s been a fairly busy transfer window at Real Madrid. No marquee signing yet, but the future is sure in view with the signing of players like Dani Ceballos and Theo Hernandez.   

The club was once closely linked with the duo of Gianluigi Donnarumma and Kylian Mbappe but may lose out on both youngsters.

We spoke to Lucas Navarrete in an e-mail interview, about Real Madrid's business in the ongoing transfer window and seek his predictions on the season ahead. 

Lucas Navarrete is the Chief Editor of Managing Madrid, one of Real Madrid's biggest and most read blogs online  

Dani Ceballos

How impressed are you with Real Madrid’s summer arrivals so far?

Right now, not so much. They are quality prospects but they should also be able to make an impact on the team next season, and that's not something I feel safe about.

All the new signings (Jesus Vallejo, Dani Ceballos, Theo Hernandez)  are players under the age 21; do you think this is an intentional act by the club in building a team for the future?

Yes, it's clear that Florentino and the board changed the strategy and the mindset of the club and now they want young players, the future of European football and not only quality players. The problem for that matter is that you still need to find them plenty of minutes so that they can develop. That's not easy in this club.

Highly wanted Mbappe

At the start of this transfer window, Real Madrid were closely linked with two of the most promising youngsters in European football: Gianluigi Donnarumma and Kylian Mbappe. But as it stands, the club could lose out on both players; do you the club should have pushed harder for their signatures?

For Donnarumma, no question. I think they should've signed him right now because I also believe he would've been an upgrade over Navas even this season, without taking into account how much room for improvement he has. About Mbappé, I'm not so sure about Madrid spending that kind of money even though I'm aware of the reports published in Spain. Plus, would he join Madrid as a reserve when the World Cup is next year?

Karim Benzema Vs Alvaro Morata, who is your pick?

Benzema, no question about that. He's my favourite player in the club alongside Marcelo.

What are your predictions for next season? Do you see the team successfully defending the La Liga and Champions League titles?

It will be hard to succeed in the Champions League once again and that's why I would set La Liga as the main priority. It will be important to have the younger players and the reserves accepting their roles if Madrid want to compete week in and week out. That's something Zidane accomplished very well last season but it will be even harder to do for the next campaign as players will be more ambitious trying to play and be important in the World Cup --Isco and Vazquez, mainly--.

You can follow Lucas Navarrete on Twitter here.