Alvaro Carreras’ future has been a massive talking point in recent weeks. The Spanish full-back has been doing wonders at Benfica and his performances have put him on the radar of Real Madrid.
Los Blancos are reluctant to pay the high release clause in his Benfica contract and reports earlier in the week suggested that the Spanish giants were looking to doge the clause by asking for some assistance from Manchester United, who have a buy-back clause in Carreras’ deal.
But those reports have been termed as ‘pure fantasy’ by the 22-year-old’s agent Gines Carvajal. While speaking to A Bola, he made it clear that nothing of that sort will happen in the summer and Carreras will continue at the Portuguese club.
He said via A Bola: “I don’t know where this news comes from, everything that is said in it is pure fantasy and, as such, it does not deserve any comment on my part. Carreras is doing very well in Benfica and will continue there.”
Carreras was a part of the Real Madrid youth setup back in the day but he made the switch to Manchester United in the summer of 2020. While he did make it to the Red Devils first-team, things didn’t work out for him at Old Trafford and he ended up joining Benfica at the start of 2024.
While it was an initial loan deal, the Portuguese club signed him on a permanent basis that summer for a fee of just €6 million. During negotiations, United secured a €18 million buy-back clause.
Reports suggest Los Blancos could make the most out of the clause that the Red Devils hold. The team in white needs a new left-back on a priority basis and they want to bring the 22-year-old back to the club.
But they won’t be able to make it happen this summer due to multiple reasons. While Madrid were hoping United could trigger the €18 million buy-back clause and then sell Carreras to them for around €30 million, helping Madrid save funds and handing United a significant profit, FIFA regulations make such a deal practically impossible.
Any such move would violate FIFA’s rules regarding ‘bridging transfers’, which state that a player must remain with his new club for at least 16 weeks before being sold again. This regulation already dealt a major blow to Real Madrid’s hopes of signing Carreras, and now the player’s agent has completely ruled out the possibility of a return to Old Trafford.
Carvajal has made it clear that Carreras is doing great at Benfica and will continue with the Portuguese club for now despite the increased interest in his signature.
