Carvajal offered around Serie A, and nobody is calling it a surprise
Dani Carvajal has been offered to several Serie A clubs, four months after leaving Real Madrid, and he has no plans to retire (1) (23). He is 34. His last competitive appearance in white came on 23 May, an assist in the final 84 minutes (21). Mundo Deportivo compares the situation to David Alaba's move to Udinese, which is the polite version of saying what this is: a long-serving player looking for one more season somewhere else.
The right-back who won everything at the club has spent the autumn waiting. Nobody at Valdebebas is fighting to bring him back. That is not sentimentality failing, it is a squad that moved on without a farewell.
Fourteenth after seven games, and the captaincy argument is back
Madrid sit fourth on 15 points from seven, ten goals better off than they were at this stage a year ago, and still six behind Barcelona (24). The form line reads L W W W L: a 1–0 defeat at Real Betis on 4 September, a 2–1 home win over Internazionale, a 4–1 over Rayo Vallecano, a 3–2 win at Elche, then a 2–1 loss in the derby at Atlético Madrid on 20 September. Two defeats, both away, both against sides happy to sit deep and counter.
Get the next Real Madrid CF brief by email
This article went out to subscribers as a brief. Get the next one straight to your inbox, free.
Free · No spam · Unsubscribe anytime
Angel Rodríguez went further than most after the derby, blaming Mbappé and Vinicius directly. His argument: "Les joueurs sont aux commandes au Real Madrid depuis longtemps. Il n'y a plus un seul joueur du profil de Sergio Ramos, Nacho ou Dani Carvajal" (24). He is describing the actual gap. Madrid have a midfield that presses and a front line that does not track back, and no senior defender left to shout about it. The derby loss was that problem in ninety minutes.
The market says the club knows where the holes are
Two stories define the plan. Madrid are working on a Jude Bellingham renewal worth around €30m a year (4), and Michael Olise's camp are pushing Bayern for a release clause pointed at Madrid in an extension to 2032 (5). Tie down the player you have, line up the one you want. Endrick has asked to go out on loan again, with AC Milan and Roma circling and the Italian press calling him "quasi un fantasma a Madrid" (11) (12).
The pattern is consistent. Keep the core, buy wide, loan the kids. Nico Paz's form in Argentina colours is a reminder that the buy-back clause exists for a reason (19).
What to watch
Saturday's home game against Villarreal on 10 October is the first real test of whether the derby defeat was a blip or a pattern (fixtures). Mbappé's knee is the number that matters: he returned early from France duty injured and has been posting recovery work on a bike (9) (13) (20). Valverde stayed in Madrid after picking up a knock in the derby (20). Then Roma away on 14 October. Two games in five days with a thin defence and a front line that has to decide whether it defends.
