Real Madrid and Barcelona fought this week to sign Betis player Dani Ceballos. The midfielder shone in the European Championship U-21 in Poland and both giants were accelerating to get him on board. Now, we want to remind you other battles for great, or not so great, footballers.
Vinicius Junior
Real Madrid didn’t want to lose the opportunity to sign the new pearl of the Brazilian football. Although it meant to spend €45M for a 16-years-old player. This time, Real Madrid won the race in Brazil.
Marco Asensio
It was the last race for a player and Real Madrid won. Barcelona bosses cannot forgive themselves for letting pass the opportunity to sign this young talent from RCD Mallorca. After one season on loan at Espanyol, he’s now showing his skills at Bernabéu.
Neymar Junior
One of the toughest battles between the two giants. It looks like Real Madrid were very close to sign him but Florentino Pérez finally discarded the signing and he went to Barcelona for an unknown price.
André Gomes
The former Valencia player showed his skills in the Euro 2016 in France with Portugal. Real Madrid and Barcelona wanted to sign him but the Catalan club was quicker and they spent at least €35M. This year he was heavily criticized.
Danilo
The Brazilian footballer confessed in an interview that FC Barcelona tempted here and even Neymar Jr. tried to convince him. He signed for Real Madrid for €30M but now he’s about to leave the club.
Mesut Özil or David Beckham
The German midfield shone in the World Cup 2010 and Real Madrid were very quick to sign him from Werder Bremen. Real Madrid also won the battle with David Beckham, although it was proved to be a mistake. Los Blancos got Beckham and FC Barcelona Ronaldinho. The Brazilian became one of the best footballers of the world.
David Villa
In the long list of players, we can also highlight David Villa. Real Madrid were about to sign him from Valencia, but the negotiations broke at the end. Villa joined FC Barcelona afterwards. Dani Alves or Rakitic also ended up playing in Catalonia although Real Madrid showed their interest.
