Real Madrid agree club-record £115m deal for Yan Diomandé and want to keep Vinícius

Forward becomes most expensive African playerClub are in positive talks with Vinícius JúniorReal Madrid have agreed a club-record fee of €135m (£115.7m) with RB Leipzig for Yan Diomande and are confident of warding off Arsenal’s interest in Vinícius Júnior after offering an improved contract to the Brazil forward.After several weeks of negotiations that saw Paris Saint-Germain pull out of the race, the deal for Diomande – the 19-year-old who joined the German side from Leganés last summer and starred for Côte d’Ivoire at the World Cup – was finally struck on Wednesday afternoon. It is understood that Madrid will pay an initial €125m plus another €10m in add-ons, a total that would eclipse the fee the Spanish side paid Borussia Dortmund to sign Jude Bellingham in 2023, believed to have been worth up to €134m including add-ons. Continue reading...