Official: Real Madrid renew 17-year-old defender’s contract till 2026

At this point in time, the Real Madrid defensive line is in shambles. The Merengues lost their starting right-back, Dani Carvajal, for the rest of the season with his serious injury in the last match against Villarreal. Similarly, there is still no return date in sight for David Alaba, who is also recovering from a torn ACL since the last season.

To make things worse, Eder Militao has also been struggling with physical issues since the start of this season. Antonio Rudiger is already 31 years of age and is playing a lot of minutes, both with Real Madrid and the German national team.

In such a context, the Merengues are looking to bolster their backline and might go into the winter market for this purpose, after not having brought in a new player in January for the last six years.

Meanwhile, they are also working to ensure they retain some of the highest-rated defensive talents from the youth academy. In this regard, Diario AS reports that Los Blancos have officially announced the renewal of the 17-year-old defender Joan Martinez till 2026.

The terms of this renewal had already been agreed between the two parties for some weeks now, and only the final signing was left to complete this operation. The contract has been extended only for two more years as the club plans to review and improve his contract when he comes of age next year.

The youngster had a memorable summer, as Ancelotti called him up to travel to the USA with the rest of the team for the preseason. In this tour, he played the entire second half of the friendly against AC Milan, and another 33 minutes in the El Clasico.

However, misfortune struck after his return from the USA, as he tore his ACL. But this injury has not impacted Real Madrid’s plans for him, as they have shown full confidence in his abilities with this renewal.