Real Madrid set to land £38m Como star for just £8.5m via buyback clause

Real Madrid are set to activate an £8.5m buyback clause to bring Spanish defender Jacobo Ramon back to the club next summer, according to journalist Matteo Moretto — a deal that would see Los Blancos acquire a player now valued at around £38m for less than a quarter of his current market price.

The 21-year-old was sold by Real Madrid's reserve side, the Castilla, to Serie A outfit Como in the summer of 2025 for just £2.1m. At the time of the deal, a buyback clause was inserted giving Madrid the option to repurchase him for £8.5m. That clause is now expected to be exercised ahead of the summer 2027 window.

Real Madrid transfer news: how Jacobo Ramon became a £38m player in 12 months

Under Como manager Cesc Fabregas, Ramon became an immediate first-team regular and has remained a fixture in the side this season as the ambitious Italian club compete in the Champions League for the first time in their history. His development has been rapid enough to drive his valuation from £2.1m at the point of sale to approximately £38m — a near-18-fold increase in just over a year.

The move would serve a specific purpose at the Bernabeu. Antonio Rudiger, who joined Real Madrid as a free agent, is approaching the final year of his contract and an eventual replacement is needed. Ramon, still only 21, fits the profile of a long-term succession plan rather than a short-term fix.

Real Madrid transfer news: the buyback specialist

The Jacobo Ramon operation is consistent with a pattern that Real Madrid have refined into one of European football's most effective recruitment strategies. Their ability to sign top players on free transfers has been demonstrated repeatedly: Kylian Mbappe, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Ibrahima Konate and Bernardo Silva in recent years, and David Alaba before them. Buyback clauses have delivered Dani Carvajal and Alvaro Morata in earlier cycles.

By paying £8.5m for a player worth £38m, Florentino Perez secures a defender already performing at Champions League level while saving around £29.5m on what a conventional transfer would cost. The deal may not solve all of Real Madrid's current defensive problems, but it is precisely the kind of acquisition that makes the Madrid boardroom one of the most envied in the game.