Joel’s the Real deal: Madrid land Lyon winger for £64.7m
Real Madrid FC have completed a £64.7m move for Spanish left winger Joel, with Gérson’s departure opening a place in the wide ranks.
“I’m ready for the challenge,” Joel might say — and Real Madrid FC have paid £64.7m to bring the 26-year-old winger in from Olympique Lyonnais.
The Spanish international’s move was completed on 21 August. It is a bombshell fee for a player who arrives with 90 club goals from 278 games, and a fresh option on Madrid’s left flank.
Joel steps into a spot vacated by Gérson, who left for Ponferrada on 31 August in a £35.9m deal. The Brazilian had made 23 league starts across the last two seasons, so the opening is there. But Joel will have competition: Sergio Barroso started 34 league games over that spell, while Scott Crichton started 16.
That makes this more than a big-name arrival. Joel has to turn a heavyweight price tag into a regular place, with Madrid already having options for the position. The stakes are clear, even if the pecking order is not yet settled.
For Lyon, it is another significant departure in a summer that has also seen Xabi Montero move to A. Bilbao for £13.4m. The club’s three-season run of Trophée des Champions titles ended in 2063/64, when Lyon finished runners-up. Now one of their Spanish internationals is heading for Madrid.
There is a familiar face waiting at Joel’s new club. Walter Locatelli spent 2052/53 to 2063/64 at Lyon, making 421 appearances and scoring 22 goals there before joining Madrid. He knows both sides of this switch — and will offer Joel a direct link to his former club.
Joel’s arrival gives Madrid a proven scorer and puts a new edge on the fight for the left-wing spot. The fee is a bombshell. The football starts now.