Saudi chiefs readying ‘world-record bid’ for Real Madrid forward
Saudi Pro League officials are reportedly prepared to table a world-record bid for Real Madrid attacker Vinicius Junior.
The Brazil international has seen his Real Madrid future called into question, having entered the final two years of his current contract.
Vinicius’s representatives have been in discussions with Los Blancos over a new contract, with the player keen to continue his association with the record European champions.
However, it was recently reported that talks between the two parties have stalled, adding fuel to speculation linking Vinicius with a move away from the Santiago Bernabeu.
The Saudi Pro League has emerged as the leading candidate to secure Vinicius’s services if the door opens to a surprise Real Madrid exit.
According to talkSPORT, Saudi chiefs are willing to smash the world transfer record in a bid to sign the Real Madrid star.
The report suggests that they are ready to spend an eye-watering €350m (£302m), which would surpass the £200m Paris Saint-Germain splashed out to recruit Neymar from Barcelona in 2017.
Vinicius has already been presented with a five-year deal worth €1bn (£864m) to swap La Liga for the Saudi Pro League.
The Public Investment Fund (PIF) and the Saudi Ministry of Sport are keen to add Vinicius to Al-Ahli’s squad if they are able to pull off the world-record transfer.
Al-Ahli, one of four Saudi Pro League clubs owned by PIF, can already boast Ivan Toney, Edouard Mendy, Riyad Mahrez and Roberto Firmino as some of the star players in Matthias Jaissle’s squad.
Vinicus has reportedly left the door open to completing a move to Saudi Arabia at some stage of his career.
The Saudi Pro League are keen to sign Vinicius in the next three years, although it would be a significant surprise to see him leave Real Madrid this summer.
The 25-year-old still remains a key player of the Real Madrid squad, even if it is still unclear whether he and Kylian Mbappe can thrive in the same team.
The 2024-25 campaign may have been a disappointing one for Los Blancos, but Vinicius still managed to score 22 goals and provide 19 assists in 48 competitive matches.
A player of Vinicius’s quality and age should be playing their football for the biggest clubs in the world, and with that in mind, it is difficult to see why he would leave Real Madrid unless he falls out of favour under new head coach Xabi Alonso.
And even if he were to leave Los Blancos, he would surely continue his career at another top European club, even if the financial incentive of a move to Saudi Arabia would be difficult to turn down.