RB Leipzig’s Dayot Upamecano has named Real Madrid to be one of his dream destinations in the future. He was quoted saying, “As a youngster, you dream of Real Madrid, Barcelona, Manchester United, but to get there, you have to work. I’m very proud of myself, very happy. I have to keep going in the same direction. I have to aim higher. My preference for the moment is Leipzig. Afterwards, we’ll see.”
Upamecano is a product of the Valenciennes FC youth academy but never to got to appear for the senior team of the French outfit. After attracting heavy interests from Manchester United and a host of European sides, Upamecano was sold off to Red Bull Salzburg in the summer of 2015. He made his debut shortly after arriving for Red Bull’s farm team, FC Liefering.
After featuring 23 games for the Austrian side, the teenager was again sold off for £8.7m (€10m) to Leipzig on a four-and-a-half year contract. The Bundesliga outfit has already set an asking price of £87m (€100m).
The 19-year-old has been prolific this season for the Bundesliga outfit with 36 appearances across all competitions. He was especially eye-catching against Bayern Munich in the 2-1 win on 18th March.
The Evreux-born player has been capped 33 times for the France youth sides and could make a surprise appearance for the senior side in the 2018 FIFA World Cup if Laurent Koscielny keeps up with his horrendous run of form with Arsenal.
Upamecano is athletic and well built at 6 feet 1 inches tall. His footballing intelligence flows through his impressive positional sense and composure at the back. Much like his compatriots, Raphael Varane and Samuel Umtiti, the teenager is quite fast for a centre-back and can take on those pacey forwards with ease.
He fits the bill perfectly for Real Madrid but is it the right move at this point in his career? No need to consider Florentino Perez’s intentions or his abilities.
We all the financial power the Galacticos possess and the stature they hold in attracting talents from all over Europe. However, at just 19, it might far too soon for Upamecano to even consider such an offer.
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We have already seen Martin Odegaard disappear into the youth ranks ever since his arrival at a tender age of 16. No need for Upamecano to follow the same faith especially with Jesus Vallejo and Nacho Fernandez already in the Madrid squad.
