Bournemouth defender Dean Huijsen has reportedly moved a step closer to completing his dream move to Real Madrid by passing his medical with Los Blancos.
The existence of a £50m release clause in the defender's contract put numerous clubs on red alert, including Premier League quartet Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester United and Liverpool.
However, Real Madrid moved quickly to activate the option in Huijsen's Bournemouth deal, and both sides have now been thrashing out the terms of his proposed move to the Bernabeu.
Following claims from earlier on Friday evening that the 20-year-old was undergoing his medical with Real Madrid, Fabrizio Romano now reports that those tests have been completed.
Huijsen is understood to have undertaken his examinations in London, and the deal can be considered 'verbally closed', so the final step is to have the Spain international put pen to paper.
Huijsen 'completes Real Madrid medical'
Huijsen is expected to agree a five-year contract in the Spanish capital until the summer of 2030, and he will depart Bournemouth just one season after arriving in a £12.8m deal from Italian giants Juventus.
The Cherries will therefore be making a significant profit on the two-footed youngster, who has contributed three goals and one assist from 34 matches for Bournemouth this season.
Huijsen is expected to be involved in Bournemouth's final two games of the season before heading back to his homeland, as the Cherries take on Manchester City on Tuesday and Leicester City on May 25.
The 20-year-old will reinforce a Real backline that has been ravaged by injuries for the past couple of years, as knee victims David Alaba and Eder Militao have both spent long periods on the sidelines.
Los Blancos are expected to listen to appropriate bids for Alaba this summer, while the out-of-favour Jesus Vallejo will also be on the way out when his contract expires next month.
What will Huijsen bring to Real Madrid?
Regarded as one of the best young defenders in the world for a reason, Huijsen will bring on-ball and off-ball excellence to the 15-time European champions, in addition to a 6ft 5in frame.
Highly competent when it comes to advancing play up the pitch, Huijsen has averaged over 1.5 progressive carries per Premier League game this season, putting him in the top 7% of all centre-backs in the big five European leagues.
Further stats from FBref also show that the 20-year-old makes over six passes into the final third per match and 1.51 shot-creating actions from a live-ball pass, giving Los Blancos fans every reason to be excited.
Given Huijsen's age and ceiling, there is little reason why the Spaniard cannot go on to emulate Sergio Ramos in the Real Madrid kit, and £50m for a player of his ilk is a relative bargain. body check tags ::
