Transfer Market: Real Madrid Inquires About FC Porto Target

Real Madrid is reportedly considering a move for Nordsjaelland star Caleb Yirenkyi, a player also targeted by FC Porto. The Spanish giants have already contacted their former player and Yirenkyi’s compatriot, Michael Essien, for references, according to Danish newspaper Tipsbladet.

The Danish club has set a price tag of €30 million for the 20-year-old Ghanaian midfielder, a fee that would be historic for the Danish Superliga.

The potential transfer, which could be the competition's first-ever move to the Spanish powerhouse, gains momentum with José Mourinho's imminent return to the helm of the merengues. The Portuguese coach worked with Michael Essien at Chelsea, and the former Ghanaian international, who also played for Real Madrid in 2013, is currently a player-coach at Nordsjaelland.

Yirenkyi, a versatile box-to-box midfielder and rising international — he’s among Carlos Queiroz’s call-ups for the World Cup — is the desired target at the Estádio do Dragão to fill the void left by Fofana’s return to Rennes after his loan spell. However, the Danish club has reportedly already rejected a €20 million offer from the Dragons. In January, they also turned down an €18 million approach from a Premier League club.

Nordsjaelland’s sporting director, Alexander Riget, had previously anticipated a summer transfer to one of Europe’s major leagues. In a recent interview, Riget highlighted the player’s development and maturity.

“Caleb has already played many games, and we’ve outlined plans with him, so a summer sale is a possibility as he has established himself as one of the Superliga’s top midfielders,” he stated, adding: “He is extremely mature. We agreed that he doesn’t need an intermediate step at a mid-table club in the Netherlands or Germany. We believe he is ready to go directly to one of the top five leagues and to a high level.”

Yirenkyi is represented by the agency CAA Stellar, with whom Real Madrid recently finalized the signing of Ibrahima Konaté, who is out of contract with Liverpool — and the most valuable player among those becoming free agents this summer, as you can see in the gallery below: