Atletico Madrid are reportedly ready to battle Real Madrid for the signing of Bayer Leverkusen youngster Iker Bravo.
According to Defensa Central, Real Madrid are set to face fierce competition from arch-rivals Atletico Madrid in the race to sign Bayer Leverkusen attacking prodigy Iker Bravo.
Bravo is widely regarded as one of the most exciting young prospects in Spain. A former trainee of Barcelona’s famed La Masia academy, the teenage striker joined Bayer Leverkusen last summer and has been impressing for the German club’s youth sides. Having netted three goals in three for their Under-17 side, the forward has seven goals and three assists in 14 games for the Under-19s.
Bravo has a prolific tally of 11 goals in 14 matches for the Spanish Under-17 national team, while he is yet to score in his three games for the Under-19s. The 17-year-old attacker’s immense promise and potential has seemingly caught the eyes of Real Madrid, who are keen on signing Bravo and taking him back to Spain just a year after he arrived in Germany.
Real Madrid have been going strong in their youth recruitment in recent windows and have already made several signings to strengthen the La Fabrica and the Castilla ranks. And, they see Bravo as another such target who could straight away embed into Raul Gonzalez’s Castilla outfit before eventually breaking into the senior team in the future.
However, the reigning Spanish and European champions find Atletico Madrid standing in the way of their ambitions to sign Bravo. Los Rojiblancos recently lost one of their prized young prospects, Jesus Fortea, to Real Madrid and are gunning for revenge.
They are willing to kill two birds with one stone which would see them add a prodigious talent like Bravo to their ranks while hurting their local rivals’ transfer plans. However, the report states that Bravo desires a transfer to Real Madrid, which could help Los Blancos in their pursuit of the 17-year-old.
Bayer Leverkusen, for their part, are hoping to keep hold of the exciting striker, with manager Gerardo Seoane insisting that he wishes to see the Spaniard develop at the club. But if the player is pushing for a departure, Die Werkself are unlikely to stand in his way. All factors considered, Real Madrid could be in a good position to land the 17-year-old Bravo this summer.
