Real, Malaga and Isco, last week, were said to have agreed on the transfer of the 21-year-old Spanish star from La Rosaleda Stadium to Bernabeu.
Although the agreement between the parties has not yet been announced, this is still a big victory for Real Madrid, because from the beginning, they were considered significantly inferior to their competitor Man City in the race for his signature.
Isco, in the eyes of many Real Madrid fans, is already a `family member`.
In addition to financial strength, the English team also holds a great advantage with new coach Pellegrini, who discovered Isco’s talent and promoted this raw gem to stardom in two seasons leading Malaga.
Man City has plenty of attractiveness in terms of money, holding the emotional bond between their coach and Isco, but the English team cannot compete with Real Madrid in terms of tradition, history, reputation – factors that are considered
Just after a meeting between president Florentino Perez and Malaga CEO Vincente Casado on June 21, everything changed 180 degrees, leaving Man City unable to react in time.
The above price is surprisingly cheap, because the release fee stipulated in the contract between Isco and Malaga is 35 million euros.
Real also fully promoted the `long rain soaks` strategy when sending Zinedine Zidane to directly persuade Isco.
Zidane emphasized the values and historical stature of Real as well as the important role for Isco in the plans of Carlo Ancelotti, who is about to take the position of Real Madrid head coach.
When money was no longer its strength, Real cleverly used Zidane’s reputation, Perez’s persuasive talent and the club’s historical stature to recruit Isco.
This recruitment, once confirmed by relevant parties, is reminiscent of Real’s victory over Man City in a similar blockbuster deal four years ago.
Kaka at that time refused Man City because he felt `not confident enough in the organization and ability to develop sustainably` of the English team.
Kaka later became Real’s biggest commercial mistake, but that did not affect the appeal of the Spanish team.